Online discounts soar as S Koreans avoid public places

Sydney

AS Korean shoppers shun public places over the spread of Middle East respiratory syndrome, Shinsegae Co has a proposition: online discounts of as much as 80 per cent on brands including Armani Exchange and Vivienne Westwood.

In-store sales at large department stores - such as Shinsegae's Centum City, the world's largest - fell as much as 20 per cent from a year earlier two weekends ago, according to Samsung Securities Co, while cinema visits were down 52 per cent this month through June 11. Lotte Shopping Co's department store unit expects customers to avoid public places throughout June and instead is chasing demand online with discounts of as much as 70 per cent.

"Since end-May we've seen a steep increase in online sales as customers refrain from outdoor activities," Lee Wan Shin, head of Lotte Department Store's marketing, said. "We expect this mood…