Six in 10 Korean venture businesses fail within the first three years, according to a report Wednesday.In a report titled “2nd-round Startup Ecosystem in Numbers,” the Korean Chamber of Commerce and Industry said the number of venture companies in Korea had risen to over 30,000 due to continuous deregulation over the past decade. For example, the process for creating a startup business was reduced from 12 steps to two steps, speeding up the process from 22 to four days. However, a lack of an inv

Hambuger chain Shake Shack will be opening its third Korean branch in Dongdaemun, according to SPC Thursday.The store will be located on the first floor of the Doota building in Dongdaemun, a fashion shopping district popular among shoppers in their 20s and 30s as well as tourists. The opening is set for April. Shake Shack Dongdaemun (SPC)“Dongdaemun fits well with the lively image of Shake Shack, and allows us to service both Korean and foreign customers,” an official with Shake Shack said.Shak

The Small and Medium Business Administration said Thursday it had placed restrictions on the operations of warehouse discount retailer Costco’s branch in Songdo, Incheon, to help reduce damage to surrounding small businesses.According to the restrictions, Costco will be prevented from selling cigarettes or government-issued trashed bags, as well as Korean soju or beer products in small quantities. Ramen must also be sold only in packages of 15 or larger.The store will not be able to offer delive

Office worker Kim Ji-young recently attended a friend’s wedding wearing a rented dress. “I rarely have occasions to dress up, and I didn’t see the need to spend a lot of money on buying something I would probably only wear once or twice,” she said. “I have some dresses I bought before hanging in my closet, and every time I’m cleaning out my closet those are the first items I want to throw out because they just take up space. I don’t want to buy more.”Kim is not alone. As consumers pay more atten

Incheon International Airport Corp. said Tuesday that its third-phase construction project had reached 90 percent completion, on schedule for an October opening date.(Incheon International Airport)The 4.9 trillion-won ($4.28 billion) third-phase construction project includes the upcoming second passenger terminal as well as a traffic control center and the roads leading up to the terminal. Construction on the project began in September 2013.The terminal will be opened to the public after six mon

Personal care and household goods maker Procter and Gamble is under fire for selling diapers that allegedly contain potentially toxic substances.Although large discount retailers have pulled the company‘s Pampers Baby Dry diapers off their shelves following the controversy, the South Korean government has not been able to issue an official recall or pursue punitive measures because there are no clear regulations here regarding the detected toxins.On Jan. 24, French consumer magazine 60 Millions

It‘s a bad time to be in offline retail. Last year, department stores and discount retailers alike saw slow or negative growth as e-commerce operators grew, offering a wider range of products at lower prices with the convenience of online shopping. Consumers no longer saw merit in making their way to a retail outlet to purchase items that they could find online.Offline retailers, however, are changing their approach to attract customers back to their outlets, either by going big or going small.I

Korea‘s duty-free industry, once considered a bright spot in a sluggish consumer economy, is growing shaky due to continuous developments that could threaten the flow of inbound Chinese tourists and fickle government policies.Figures from Statistics Korea released Friday showed that direct online shopping by overseas shoppers for Korean products grew 82 percent on-year in 2016 to 2.28 trillion won ($1.98 billion), from 1.25 trillion won in 2015. Of that amount, nearly 1.8 trillion won, or 78 per

The Korean Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology said recently that it will be taking part in creating a National Aeronautics and Space Administration-funded education program producing space educational content.Together with the US-based Wex Foundation and the International Space Exploration Research Institute at Hanyang University in Seoul, KICT was awarded a 1.48 billion won ($1.24 million) grant from the NASA, the institute said.  Vacuum chamber being built at KICT (KICT)“KI

The history of caffeination in Korea is long and winding, beginning with a tragic king who became the country‘s first coffee lover while fleeing in wartime. After decades of serving as a vehicle of socialization at coffee shops, coffee moved into offices and homes with the introduction of instant coffee mixes. People went back out to coffee shops to get their java once Western-style takeout cafes were introduced and now coffee is coming back into the home with small, inexpensive espresso machine

Coupang said Thursday it is ending its social commerce offerings to wholly transition into an e-commerce company.The company will be immediately discontinuing its social commerce deals, which included limited-time discount coupons for local restaurants and services such as beauty salons. Coupang began in 2010 as a social commerce company, meaning its main focus was on local service deals and group-buying coupons. In 2012, it began moving into the e-commerce space.“We decided that our open market

Cosmetics maker Amorepacific released its fourth-quarter and yearly profits on Thursday, showing a drop in operating profits in the fourth quarter but a successful year overall.Amorepacific saw 1.56 trillion won ($1.36 billion) in sales in the last quarter, up 7.3 percent on-year. However, its operating profits fell 16.5 percent on-year to 134 billion won. Overall in 2016, the company saw a 18.3 percent rise in sales to nearly 6.7 trillion won, bringing its operating profits up 18.5 percent to 1

Incheon International Airport Corp. said Wednesday it has officially begun accepting bids for duty-free operators hoping to open stores in its second terminal, which is set to open later this year.The call for bids comes about three months later than initially planned, in the midst of tensions between the airport and the Korea Customs Service about the way in which licenses are granted.“We could not hold off any longer on the bids. If we do not choose the operators by April, we may face a crisis

Doubts are growing over the future of Dongwha Duty Free, as industry speculation grows that it is unlikely to meet an extended debt repayment deadline amid heated competition among duty-free stores in central Seoul.The country’s first downtown duty-free store, which opened its doors in 1973, is currently in crisis, as it has failed to meet a December deadline to pay back Hotel Shilla in a put option. (Yonhap)In May 2013, Hotel Shilla acquired a 19.9 percent stake in Dongwha Duty Free with a put

Tourists from China who came to Korea during the Lunar New Year holiday through travel service provider Ctrip take part in a hanbok experience event at Galleria Duty Free 63 in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, Monday. (Hanwha Galleria)

Retailers are seeking to attract more customers by rolling out delivery-related services and tackling niche delivery issues.On Tuesday, Paju Premium Outlets, run by Shinsegae in partnership with Simon Property Group, announced it had signed an agreement with DHL Korea to provide overseas shipping for tourists shopping in Korea. Overseas shipping services offered at Paju Premium Outlets (Shinsegae Simon)Tourists who purchase products at Paju Premium Outlets can request their items be shipped to t

Lotte World Mall is offering shoppers who live within 10 kilometers of the mall a ride home in a Mercedes-Benz E350 if they spend more than 30,000 won ($25) using Lotte’s L.Pay system. The event will give rides to up to 100 customers daily from Monday to Thursday. (Lotte Asset Development)

The Chinese government is strengthening regulations on the management of imported cosmetics, creating uncertainty for Korean cosmetics firms that have been sustaining growth through popularity among Chinese shoppers.These measures are the latest in a string of moves by the Chinese government seemingly aimed at the booming Korean cosmetics industry. Industry watchers speculate the protective measures are designed to put pressure on Korea, which has agreed to deploy a US Terminal High Altitude Are

The number of air passengers flying through Korea rose to a record high in 2016 with high growth in both domestic and international air travel, according to the Transport Ministry on Monday.Last year, there were a total of 103.9 million journeys by air in Korea.  Travelers crowd Incheon International Airport on Monday, the last day of the Lunar New Year Holiday. (Yonhap)Domestic travel rose 10.5 percent on-year to 30.9 million trips, while international travel rose 18.8 percent to 73 million.The

Retail firm E-Land Group said Wednesday that it has closed a deal to sell its youth clothing brand Teenie Weenie to China’s V-Grass Fashion for 5.13 billion yuan ($751.2 million).“The two companies successfully closed the deal believing that after E-Land successfully introduced Teenie Weenie to the enormous Chinese market, V-Grass will be able to grow it into a global brand,” said an executive with E-Land. V-Grass is a women’s fashion company in China. A Teenie Weenie store in China (E-Land Grou