GS25, a convenience store operated by the retailer GS Retail, announced on March 26 that it will expand its same‑day delivery service to cover the entire country. The previously Seoul‑centric “same‑day” service will now be available at more than 9,500 stores nationwide, excluding only a few areas such as Jeju, Daegu, and Gangwon. Orders placed by 5 pm (17:00) on weekdays or before noon on Saturdays will be delivered the next day.
Only items that weigh no more than 20 kg and measure less than 160 cm in total are eligible for delivery. The fee is tiered according to weight: up to 350 g costs ₩3,500; up to 20 kg costs up to ₩9,100. GS25 will run a promotion offering a ₩500 discount on all customers through March 31, allowing same‑day delivery for as low as ₩3,000.
The first trial of “same‑day” was launched in December last year and by July this year had already seen about 400 % higher usage than at launch, proving popular with fast delivery. GS25 has therefore transferred its entire logistics from CJ Logistics to the national delivery network operated by CJ대한통운, completing its nationwide service.
Competition among convenience stores for same‑day delivery is intensifying. Stores such as CU have already introduced a “same‑day” service called ‘내일보장’ (Same‑Day Delivery) focused on the Seoul area. With GS25 expanding first to nationwide coverage, it will likely outpace rivals in attracting customers and speed of delivery. According to GS25, its own “반값택배” (half‑price delivery) achieves over 1 million orders a month and about 40 % of customers make additional purchases, generating more than ₩50 billion in annual sales.
In this trend, convenience stores are speeding up efforts to secure logistics hubs. Lotte Global Logistics will unify its CU operation from now on and expand the network to over 10 000 stores while CJ대한통운 is preparing to shift its 6,500‑store network of E마트24 into a nationwide delivery operator beginning in December, forming a joint alliance between convenience stores and delivery operators.
(Reporter) Park Sang‑kyung, Hanyangdotcom news, highseoul@hankyung.com