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| Homeplus' popular Dang Dang Chicken is displayed at its store in Seoul, Aug. 9. Courtesy of Homeplus |
By Kim Jae-heun
Homeplus, one of Korea's three major discount supermarket chains, is looking to attract customers by offering the lowest prices for its grocery items in the local market by utilizing a big data algorithm system, the company said on Wednesday.
It will select the 50 daily best-selling items and fresh foods every week to compare their prices with rival retailers' stores before selling them for cheaper. Products include bananas, cherry tomatoes, rice, potatoes, carrots, milk, detergents, toothpaste, frying pans and various snacks.
The retail firm has already been promoting its Price Stabilization Project under the direction of its CEO Lee Je-hoon since the beginning of this year.
In the first 200 days of Homeplus' sales marketing policy ― from Jan. 13 to July 31 ― its online revenues and volume of orders increased year-on-year by 20 percent and 22 percent, respectively.
Starting in February, the large discount store also offered the lowest prices on its in-house private brand products, such as tofu, bean sprouts, milk and tissue paper. This led Homeplus' sales of the 25 designated products at its stores to jump by 68 percent and by 243 percent through its online mall, between Feb. 3 and July 2.
However, the most successful product offered by Homeplus this year was its Dang Dang Chicken item that the retail firm introduced for just 6,990 won ($5.21) on June 30.
The chicken meal instantly grabs consumers' attention amid the soaring prices at local fried chicken restaurant chains, which sell similar amounts for 20,000 won on average after price hikes for cooking oil and other raw materials. Homeplus, however, sells its fried chicken for one-third that price. Over just 50 days, the retail company sold some 460,000 Dang Dang Chicken meals.
"We will secure our product's competitive edge in the local market with our Price Stabilization Project and continue to expand various price policies that benefit our customers," a Homeplus official said.
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