E-Land is in talks with private equity firm MBK Partners to sell its restaurant chains as part of its financial restructuring plans, industry sources said Tuesday.The potential deal includes E-Land’s 18 restaurant chains including casual dining buffet Ashley, sushi buffet Soosa and Nature Kitchen.  (Yonhap)The chains are run by E-Land Group’s leisure arm E-Land Park and are estimated to have brought in about 700 billion won ($610 million) in revenue last year. According to reports, the deal is i

Global premium liquor company Pernod Ricard has donated a total of 2 billion won ($1.75 million) over the past 15 years to support students of gugak, or traditional Korean music.According to the company, these donations were in line with Pernod Ricard’s philosophy of helping to preserve the cultures and traditions of the countries in which it does business, and to share corporate profits with those communities.Pernod Ricard Korea CEO Jean Touboul (center) plays the janggu at the 2017 Pernod Rica

E-commerce company Coupang said Monday that it moved its offices to Tower 730 in Songpa-gu, Seoul. Coupang will take over 19 floors of the 27-floor building, representing over twice the size of its previous offices in Samseong-dong. The company said that the move and expansion will accommodate Coupang‘s quickly growing business. (Coupang)

The duty-free industry here is looking to attract Korean shoppers going abroad in early May to prop up its falling sales as it continues to lose revenue from Chinese tourists.Since mid-March, the duty-free industry has suffered major blows to its sales following the ban on travel packages to Korea imposed by Beijing in response to Seoul’s decision to bring an American anti-missile defense system here. Shilla IPark Duty Free (HDC Shilla)Major duty-free operators such as Lotte Duty Free reported s

The Korean low-cost carrier market has virtually “no limit” to potential expansion, according to a Boeing executive Friday.Speaking at a symposium about the global low-cost carrier market at the Conrad Seoul, Boeing’s Managing Director of Marketing for Northeast Asia Darren Hulst did not agree with concerns about the low-cost market reaching a saturation point. Boeing Managing Director of Marketing for Northeast Asia Darren Hulst speaks at the Conrad Seoul Friday. (Boeing Korea)“There’s addition

No bids were placed for the fashion and accessories duty-free area in the second terminal at Incheon Airport, officials said Thursday.A spokesman for the airport corporation said the result was “unexpected” and the airport was currently “reviewing plans for another tender.”(Yonhap)The fashion and accessories area was one of three licenses open to bids from large companies at the second terminal. Four companies, including Lotte Duty Free, Shilla Duty Free, Shinsegae DF and Hanwha, placed bids on

Hanwha Galleria said Thursday that it plans to open a new luxury department store in Gwanggyo, a new city in Suwon in 2019.Set to open on the 40th anniversary of the company’s department store business, the department store will be designed by Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas.  The design for Hanwha’s new convention complex in Gwanggyo (Hanwha Galleria)Hanwha Galleria said that it will use its expertise in global luxury brand marketing and the new outlet’s location next to Gwanggyo Lake Park to crea

Incheon International Airport Corp. on Wednesday accepted bids from duty-free companies hoping to open shops in its new second terminal, pushing bidders to outdo rival’s offers while facing an uncertain revenue forecast.Lotte Duty Free, Korea‘s largest duty-free operator, submitted bids for each of the three slots reserved for large companies, alongside Shinsegae DF, Shilla Duty Free and Hanwha Galleria. Doosan, which was also considering a bid, decided not to apply for a slot.A duty-free store

E-commerce company Coupang said Wednesday it has opened a new specialty store for healthful food and beverages.“With a growing interest in healthy lifestyles, our customers are seeking more organic and eco-friendly products,” said Navid Veiseh, Coupang’s senior vice president of global e-commerce.  (Yonhap)The newly launched category offers 6,000 food items from over 375 organic and natural goods brands, including Orga Whole Foods, Sangha Farm and Simply Organic.The store groups together healthf

Starbucks Korea held an event to promote its resource recycling campaign at Seoul Forest Park on Tuesday, together with the Ministry of Environment, the Korea Zero Waste Movement Network and the Seoul Forest Park Conservancy. Starbucks Korea CEO Lee Seok-gu (first from right) plants trees with officials and volunteers at the event. (Starbucks Korea)

The retail market is making moves to better capture consumers living in single-member households as demand in this demographic continues to rise, with notable impact on revenues.Retailers and manufacturers alike are making changes to their products to appeal to these so-called “single-sumers,” who are seeking out smaller furniture and appliances, multifunctional products and single-serve foods. (Hanssem)The rise of single-member households in Korea has been noted for several years. According to

Lotte Group, South Korea’s retail giant, marked its 50th anniversary Monday with the announcement of a new vision and the lavish opening of Lotte World Tower, amid lingering concerns over its future growth and legal troubles for its leader Shin Dong-bin.Chairman Shin Dong-bin speaks at a ceremoy celebrating Lotte Group's 50th anniversary Monday. (Lotte Group)“Today as we welcome our 50th anniversary, we are at a turning point for new growth,” Chairman Shin told Lotte employees at an internal eve

BEIJING -- China will create a new special economic zone outside Beijing similar to those established in Shenzhen and Shanghai, the government said, in a bid to boost flagging growth and reduce the strain on the capital.The Xiongan New Area, located some 100 kilometres (62 miles) southwest of downtown Beijing in Hebei province, will rival south China's Shenzhen Special Economic Zone, established in the 1980s, and Shanghai's Pudong New Area, set up in the 1990s. The move was a "major historic and

Prosecutors said Sunday they will question former President Park Geun-hye this week for the first time since her arrest over a corruption scandal that led to her removal from office.Park was taken into custody on Friday after a court issued a warrant for her arrest. She faces charges of colluding with her friend Choi Soon-sil to extort money from conglomerates, including bribes from Samsung Group. Former President Park Geun-hye (Yonhap)The former president will be questioned at her detention cen

Ahn Cheol-soo of the People's Party won another primary Sunday, bringing him one step closer to clinching his party's nomination for the presidential election in May.Ahn, a former leader of the party, won the sixth primary covering Seoul and the adjacent city of Incheon with 86.48 percent of the vote, party officials said. Ahn Cheol-soo (Yonhap)He was trailed by former opposition leader Sohn Hak-kyu at10.62 percent and Deputy National Assembly Speaker Park Joo-sun at2.9 percent. (Yonhap)

Stakes are running high as Kumho Asiana Group gears up for a legal fight over the acquisition of a controlling stake in Kumho Tire, as it continues to demand that creditors allow Chairman Park Sam-koo to form a consortium to fund the purchase.The main point of conflict currently involves the deadline upon which Park is to specify whether he would move to buy back the 42 percent controlling state that is to be sold to Chinese tire maker Doublestar unless he does. On Friday, Park rejected an April

Korean retailers are seeking to provide customized and real-time shopping solutions for consumers using artificial intelligence in hopes of racking up sales in a sluggish retail economy.SK Planet‘s online open market platform 11st kicked off the trend with the commercial release of a chatbot named Baro on Wednesday. Baro is designed to complement 11st’s digital concierge service that allows for real-time product consultations through the 11st smartphone app. It is currently available for product

Asiana Airlines said Tuesday that it was ranked the top airline in this year’s National Customer Satisfaction Index.In particular, Asiana passengers showed high satisfaction among women, passengers in their 20s, and those flying in premium classes. (Yonhap)The airline received high marks for its premium services, its new planes and IT-focused services including its mobile app and beacon service.The NCSI, compiled by the Korea Productivity Center, is an index measuring consumer satisfaction towar

Kumho Tire’s creditors have voted to disallow Kumho Asiana Chairman Park Sam-koo from forming a consortium to raise funds to buy a controlling stake in the tire company, but allowed for the possibility of “revisiting the discussion.”On Tuesday, Korea Development Bank released a statement saying that the creditors voted down a motion to allow Park to form a consortium with no strings attached. However, the creditors also voted to leave open the possibility of another vote if Park submits a “speci

SK Planet’s open market n11.com was the top open market in Turkey for the second consecutive year in 2016, according to the company Tuesday. Employees pose at the headquarters of n11.com in Istanbul, Turkey. (SK Planet)It was the shopping platform with the most transactions in 2015, overtaking Turkish operator Hepsiburada. Last year, transactions on n11.com totaled $563 million, with 18 million visitors to the site each month. Both sales and visitors rose by 20 percent on-year.According to SK Pl