Shinsegae, Namdaemun market join forces for global shopping district

Shinsegae Department Store joins forces with traditional market merchants and the Jung-gu District Office to change the Namdaemun Market, a traditional market at the center of downtown Seoul, into a global tourist attraction for shopping. The department store has announced Thursday that it will sign an "agreement for cooperation and co-prosperity with traditional market" with the merchants’ association of Namdaemun Market and the district Office.

The move is based on the common understanding that both department stores and traditional markets need to work together for common interests. It is said that both sides have reached a consensus that the traditional market needs to strengthen its competitiveness to form a global shopping district in the area stretching from the Namdaemun Market to the flagship store of Shinsegae in Chungmuro, Jung-gu.

Namdaemun Market is Korea’s largest traditional market, which encompasses 11,000 stores and 50,000 merchants. Although the market recently attracts many foreign tourists, poor infrastructure and lack of sanitary facilities have continuously been pointed out as problems.

Shinsegae Department Store is to start from improving the market’s in-store environment for shoppers. It will select 2-3 model stores for each category and reorganize product and advertising displays.