Lotte Mart is aggressively expanding its presence in Southeast Asia, making a significant entry into the Singaporean market on the back of its successful private brand (PB) products in overseas markets. Having primarily focused on Indonesia and Vietnam since its international business began in 2008, this move into Singapore marks Lotte Mart's first expansion into a new Southeast Asian nation in 17 years.
On May 15th, Lotte Mart announced the official opening of its first "Lotte Mart EXPRESS" store, a K-grocery specialty shop, within the "FairPrice Xtra VivoCity" hypermarket, a major outlet of Singapore's largest retailer, NTUC FairPrice (National Trades Union Congress FairPrice).
The opening ceremony was attended by Kang Seong-hyun, CEO of Lotte Mart & Super; Vipul Chawla, CEO of NTUC FairPrice Group; and Shin Yu-yeol, Head of Future Growth Office at Lotte Holdings and grandson of the Lotte Group's founder. Their presence underscored the Lotte Group's strong interest and commitment to this Singaporean venture. Notably, Vice President Shin's direct involvement is interpreted as a clear indication of the Lotte Group's proactive stance on future overseas business expansion.
The launch of the "Lotte Mart EXPRESS No. 1" store is the culmination of approximately nine months of close collaboration following a memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed in August last year between Lotte Mart and NTUC FairPrice regarding the supply and sale of PB products. This achievement is seen as a testament to their joint objective of successfully introducing the competitiveness of Korean products to the Singaporean market.
Under the slogan "Gateway to Korean Flavors," "Lotte Mart EXPRESS" features various specialized sections dedicated to Korean food. A standout is the "Yorihada Kitchen," a ready-to-eat food corner with an open kitchen and dining area. Here, popular K-foods such as tteokbokki (spicy rice cakes), gimbap (seaweed rice rolls), and dakgangjeong (sweet and spicy fried chicken) are freshly prepared and sold. A key feature is that the recipes, developed by professional chefs at Lotte Mart's Food Innovation Center (FIC), faithfully replicate authentic Korean flavors and maintain high quality.
Lotte Mart currently operates 63 overseas stores, including 48 in Indonesia and 15 in Vietnam, and is recognized for its successful establishment in the Southeast Asian market. The company's strategy of successfully adapting its proven Korean grocery store model to local markets has resulted in significant overseas business growth, with a 3.0% increase in sales and a 19.6% rise in operating profit last year. This growth momentum continued into the first quarter of this year, with sales up by 9.5% and operating profit increasing by 20.6%, further solidifying Lotte Mart's position in the Southeast Asian market.
Having built a strong business foundation in the Southeast Asian retail market, Lotte Mart aims to further strengthen its overseas competitiveness through this entry into Singapore. As a key economic and logistics hub in the region, Singapore is expected to serve as a crucial stepping stone for Lotte Mart's future expansion into neighboring countries.
The approach to the Singaporean market differs from Lotte Mart's traditional method of directly opening stores. Instead, "Lotte Mart EXPRESS" will operate as a "shop-in-shop" within the hypermarket of NTUC FairPrice, the largest retailer in Singapore. This strategic alliance is anticipated to reduce initial investment burdens, secure a stable revenue stream through synergy with a major local retailer, and effectively enhance the recognition of the "Lotte" brand.
Furthermore, Lotte Mart's flagship PB brands, "Onuljoh-eun" and "Yorihada," will also be available at over 100 FairPrice stores across Singapore. Lotte Mart currently exports more than 500 PB products to 13 countries, including Vietnam, Mongolia, and Hong Kong. The company attributes this success to the exceptional quality and price competitiveness of its PB products, as well as the growing global prominence of K-food.
In addition, Lotte Mart will operate a "Lotte Zone" within FairPrice stores, bringing together popular PB products and key items from Lotte Wellfood and Lotte Chilsung. This section will feature approximately 100 popular PB food items, ranging from traditional Korean snacks to low-sugar products catering to wellness trends, alongside well-known Lotte Group products like Pepero, Choco Pie, and Chilsung Cider, which have already gained international popularity. A "Ramen Station" where consumers can cook and enjoy Korea's representative noodle dish on-site, as well as sections featuring popular products from major Korean food companies such as CJ CheilJedang and Ottogi, will also be available, offering Singaporean consumers a diverse K-food experience.
Kang Seong-hyun, CEO of Lotte Mart & Super, emphasized, "Lotte Mart EXPRESS is a store meticulously designed through close collaboration between Lotte's leading retail and food companies to vividly convey the taste and culture of Korea to Singaporean consumers. Leveraging the extensive know-how Lotte Mart has accumulated over the past 20 years in overseas business, we aim to successfully establish ourselves in the Singaporean market, promote the excellence of K-food, and play a pivotal role as a key hub for PB product exports in Southeast Asia."
Lotte Mart's partner, FairPrice, is the largest retailer in Singapore, with annual sales of approximately 5 trillion KRW. Since its establishment in 1973, it operates a diverse network of offline stores across Singapore, including 9 hypermarkets, 100 supermarkets, and 170 convenience stores, providing differentiated services tailored to the characteristics of each commercial district. This collaboration with FairPrice, which possesses a robust local distribution network, is expected to create positive synergy for Lotte Mart's entry into the Singaporean market.
This venture into Singapore is seen as more than just an overseas market expansion for Lotte Mart. It represents a significant opportunity to demonstrate the global competitiveness of K-food and secure new growth engines for Korean retailers. The industry will be closely watching whether Lotte Mart can successfully establish a foothold in Singapore and leverage this to expand its influence throughout the broader Southeast Asian market.
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