Lotte Shopping Celebrates 1st Anniversary of KORUS FTA with U.S. Product Sale

Lotte Shopping, a leading high-end Korean department store chain, marked the first anniversary of the Korea—United States Free Trade Agreement (KORUS FTA) with an in-store promotion at its Anyang store featuring U.S. seafood products such as lobster, croaker, scallop, snow crab, shrimp and a wide variety of other food items including fresh orange, almond, walnut, pistachio, dried fruits, wine, confectionery goods, and juice. Brisk weekend sales were reported as consumers enjoyed 20 to 50 percent discounts on their favorite U.S. origin products. KORUS FTA has expanded market opportunities for U.S. food products by reducing import duties and consequently retail prices. Lotte Shopping reported that it plans to hold in-store promotions of U.S. food products at least two times a year.

COTTON USA Creates Buzz at Seoul Fashion Week

COTTON USA sponsored two young Korean designers who featured their cotton runway collections during Seoul Fashion Week. Designer Go Tae-Yong and Designer Kwak Hyun-Joo’s full cotton wardrobe collections will be showcased on May 7 during Cotton Day Korea 2013.

Korean Shoppers Enjoy Deep Discounts on American Wines at Lotte Mart

Lotte Mart, a leading Korean retail grocery chain, marked the first anniversary of the Korean—United States Free Trade Agreement (KORUS FTA) with an in-store wine promotion featuring California wines discounted by 50 percent. Since KORUS FTA implementation on March 15, 2012, Lotte Mart reports that American wines have grown from 9% to 12% of its wine sales and Lotte Mart has increased its portfolio of American wines from 30 to 60 labels. Korean consumers are enjoying American wines at reduced costs since KORUS FTA eliminated the 15 percent import duty on wine and many retailers, such as Lotte Mart, are developing relationships with large scale U.S. suppliers in order to facilitate direct imports from the United States without using independent importers. For more information on the Korean wine market please see our latest Wine Market Brief and FTA Product Brief.