Shinsegae Group on Tuesday announced it has established Shinsegae DF, a duty-free arm of the county’s second-largest retailer.
The Shinsegae DF will work on setting up an urban duty-free store in central Seoul, bidding for which will start in June. The company’s duty-free business was previously under Westin Chosun, a hotel unit under Shinsegae, and the newly-established firm will be headed by the hotel CEO Sung Young-mok.
“We want to nurture the duty-free business that has a huge potential. We believe the business will create a synergy effect with our fashion division Shinsegae International and the Premium Outlet. We are also thinking about going global,” the company stated in a press release.
Shinsegae, best known for its eponymous high-end department store and discount store chain E-Mart, jumped into the duty-free business in 2012 by acquiring Paradise DF. Earlier this year the company won the rights to operate a section of the duty-free store inside Incheon International Airport.
South Korea’s duty-free industry has been blossoming thanks to the increasing number of tourists. Its size is estimated at around 8 trillion won ($7.9 billion).
