Shinsegae Dept. Store to sell luxury wines in Gangnam

South Korean retail giant Shinsegae Group is set to sell luxury wines with price tags up to tens of thousands of dollars in Seoul, as demand for premium bottles remains healthy despite the slowing local wine market.

Shinsegae Department Store plans to open a shop at its Gangnam branch on June 10, which will provide some 5,000 luxury wines, including the world’s most expensive Liber Pater, Domaine Leroy and Grand Cru classés, according to industry sources in Seoul on Thursday.

The 1,300-square-meter (14,000-square-foot) shop will offer various services for discerning customers, such as luxury wine storage, private tasting and pairing events, as well as lectures by professional sommeliers.

The department expected luxury wine sales to report strong growth, although the South Korean market shrank.

“The high-end wine market is predicted to keep growing just as luxury goods are selling well even in an economic slowdown,” said a department store industry source.

LUXURY WINES TO CONTINUE GROWTH DESPITE MARKET SLOWDOWN

Shinsegae Department Store’s sales of wines that are pricier than 1 million won ($733) rose more than 50% in the first five months of this year. South Korea’s wine imports fell 12.9% to $506 million last year.

The company’s Gangnam branch, located in the district of Seocho, one of the richest neighborhoods in South Korea and among the most expensive areas in Seoul, was the largest department store in the country by sales.

Shinsegae Department Store Gangnam’s revenue topped 3 trillion won last year, becoming the first single department store branch with higher sales than the mark in South Korea.

No. 2 was Lotte Department Store Jamsil, with sales of 2.8 trillion won.

Write to Sun A Lee at suna@hankyung.com
 
Jongwoo Cheon edited this article.