GS Retail Co. owns Lalavla well being and wonder shops in South Korea. The grocery store chain firm introduced on Thursday, Aug. 11, that it could be closing all of its Lalavla shops after 17 years since coming into the well being and wonder retailing enterprise.
GS Retail revealed that the closures would begin quickly, and the entire branches are anticipated to be shut by the tip of November. The corporate cited the decelerate of gross sales as a result of COVID-19 pandemic and stiff market competitors as the explanations for the choice.
As per Yonhap Information Company, the corporate will stop the operation of its Lalavla on-line store first, and this may happen in September. Subsequently, GS Retail will shut its brick-and-mortar outlets, and the entire places must be shut earlier than December.
Relating to the pull-out of Lalavla shops from the market, an official of the corporate mentioned in a press release, “GS Retail determined to finish our well being and wonder retailer enterprise to focus sources and efforts on our comfort shops and fast commerce providers, the corporate’s future progress engines.”
It was talked about that GS Retail first jumped into the well being and wonder retailer enterprise in 2005. It launched its first Watsons retailer in Hongdae, Seoul, by means of a three way partnership cope with AS Watson Group of Hong Kong.
The corporate acquired 100% of the Watsons Korea JV in 2017, and a yr later, the shops have been rebranded to Lalavla. The H&B retailer was in a position to increase and opened nearly 200 shops, however through the years, as a result of falling gross sales, the variety of places has additionally sharply declined to simply 30 this yr.
GS Retail’s predominant rival is CJ Olive Younger, the H&B retailer line of the CJ Group. Apparently, GS Retail couldn’t sustain with the fierce competitors. Thus, CJ Olive Younger stays the No. 1 participant out there.
In the meantime, Korea Joongang Day by day reported that GS Retail’s Lalavla on-line shopping center would cease taking orders on Sept. 2. The corporate may also be taking inquiries relating to refunds or product exchanges till Sept. 30 solely.