Yogiyo takes another stab at quick commerce market

Models pose in front of a GS The Fresh discount store branch, which is used as a micro-fulfillment center for Yogiyo's quick commerce deliveries. [GS RETAIL]

Yogiyo jumped back into the quick commerce market with GS Retail, vowing to become the first company to deliver groceries and products within one hour on a nationwide scale.

The company will offer so-called quick commerce deliveries, a term referring to deliveries of groceries and daily items usually offered at discount stores within an hour.

The service is available starting Tuesday on the Yomart section of its restaurant delivery application Yogiyo.

Yomart is currently only offered to users in Nowon District, northern Seoul and Seobuk District in Cheonan. However, it plans to offer the one-hour delivery service nationwide within the first half of this year.

Other restaurant delivery apps such as Coupang Eats and Baedal Minjok also offer one-hour deliveries for groceries and other daily necessities through its applications but have a limited scope. Baedal Minjok’s B Mart offers services to users in Seoul, Gyeonggi, Incheon and Daejeon. Coupang Eats Mart offers service in Songpa, Gangnam and Seocho District in southern Seoul.

Yogiyo says it will be able to swiftly reach its goal due to GS Retail, which owns 30 percent of the company.

Rather than having to build or sign contracts to use new micro-fulfillment centers like other companies, Yogiyo will use existing GS The Fresh discount stores as its delivery hubs. There are 350 GS The Fresh branches in Korea, which the company says will allow it to deliver products nationwide within an hour.

Yogiyo first offered the Yomart service in 2020, but stopped in September last year after it was sold to a GS Retail-led consortium and couldn't use existing micro-fulfillment centers.

Some 10,000 varieties of food and products will be offered on Yomart.

Deliveries will be made by GS Retail’s Woodel delivery service, workers who deliver goods bought at GS25 branches, or workers from other delivery start-ups such as Vroong, Beyond Delivery and Barogo.

“GS Retail will act as a key player to offer the Yomart service on a nationwide level, offering unique quick commerce services to customers,” said Ahn Byung-hoon, head of GS Retail's quick commerce business division.

BY LEE TAE-HEE [lee.taehee2@joongang.co.kr]