S. Korea’s CU surpasses 500 global stores

South Korean convenience store chain CU announced on Thursday that it surpassed 500 global stores, achieving an annual footfall of 100 million overseas customers. 

CU entered Mongolia in 2028 and Malaysia in 2021. In the first half of next year, it will open its first store in Kazakhstan. 

As of November this year, the number of stores in Mongolia of CU has grown from 21 in 2018 to 370. In Malaysia, there were 41 stores of CU in 2021, but now CU has 140 local stores. 

Furthermore, both Mongolia and Malaysia CU stores saw a significant increase in average annual sales, with Mongolia CU growing at 12.0% and Malaysia CU growing at 10.5%.

This year, the average number of customers visiting stores in both countries was about 750 per day, which is about 10 million per month and about 100 million per year. Next year, the number of visitors is expected to exceed 150 million per year.

The share of Korean products including private brands (PB) in CU's total sales at overseas stores exceeded 50%. 

CU is expanding its stores in Mongolia including Darkhan-Uul, Orkhon, Erdenet, Selenge, and Tuv, in addition to its presence in Ulaanbaatar.

In Malaysia, CU is strategically targeting locations such as Johor Bahru, Malacca, and Penang, with Kuala Lumpur serving as the central hub for its operations.

Write to Young Chan Song at 0full@hankyung.com