CU abroad: Convenience stores look to greener pastures on saturation back home

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CU abroad: Convenience stores look to greener pastures on saturation back home

Published: 27 May. 2025, 18:50 Updated: 29 May. 2025, 10:36

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

BGF Retail CEO Min Seung-bae, left, and CU Hawaii CEO Robert Kurisu pose for a photo with company representatives after signing a master franchise agreement for CU’s entry into the Hawaiian market on May 26. [BGF RETAIL]

Korea’s major convenience store chains are accelerating their push overseas, seeking growth in mature markets like the United States and Japan after posting their first-ever quarterly decline this year.

With the domestic market reaching saturation, CU and GS25 are betting on Korean food, private label goods and localized offerings to win over foreign consumers — even in the country where the modern convenience store was born.

Aloha, Hawaii

BGF Retail, operator of CU, announced Tuesday that it will establish a foothold in Hawaii by launching a local subsidiary and signing a master franchise agreement with CU Hawaii LLC, a company established by local partner WKF.

Under the deal, CU Hawaii will operate stores under the CU brand, while BGF Retail receives royalties.

“It’s symbolic that a Korean convenience store brand is entering the United States, where the world’s first convenience store [7-Eleven] was born in 1927,” a BGF Retail spokesperson said. “Hawaii is a major tourist destination with over 10 million annual visitors, making it a promising market for convenience stores.”

The Hawaiian market is largely dominated by around 70 7-Eleven stores, but aging facilities and customer dissatisfaction have opened up space for new entrants, according to BGF Retail.

CU plans to localize its offerings with a mix of popular Korean items such as gimbap (seaweed rice roll) and instant noodles along with Hawaiian favorites like poke and loco moco.

Private label items that gained traction in Korea, including Yonsei Milk cream bread, will also be introduced. CU’s first Hawaiian store is slated to open in October.

A model holds a bag of GS25’s Netflix Jumbo Popcorn in front of a dedicated display selling GS25 private label products at Don Quijote discount stores in Japan from mid-May. [GS RETAIL]

GS Retail, meanwhile, has taken steps into the Japanese market by placing dedicated displays of its GS25 private label products in about 400 Don Quijote discount stores across Japan since mid-May.

Items include YouUs-branded goods such as Netflix jumbo popcorn and dalgona (melted sugar candy) cookies inspired by the hit series "Squid Game" (2021-).

GS Retail plans to expand its distribution network in Japan, building on this initial product rollout.

CU opened its first branch in Kazakhstan in March 2024. [BGF RETAIL]

Broader international footprint

Korean convenience stores began their global expansion nearly seven years ago, but the recent popularity of Korean culture is helping those efforts gain traction.

GS25 entered Vietnam in 2018 and Mongolia in 2021, and now operates 355 and 274 stores in those countries, respectively. The two markets generated 49.8 billion won ($36 million) in revenue during the first quarter of 2025.

CU — which now has 480 stores in Mongolia since entering in 2018 and 160 in Malaysia from 2021 — has opened 40 locations in Kazakhstan since entering the market in March last year.

CU’s Mongolian partner, Premium Nexus, has been publicly listed on the Mongolian Stock Exchange since 2021 and posted its first profit in the first half of 2024.

Customers browse items at a convenience store in Seoul on May 12. [YONHAP]

Domestic saturation propels expansion

The push abroad comes amid signs of market saturation at home.

Convenience store sales in Korea fell 0.4 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. This marks the first quarterly decline since the ministry began tracking the data in 2013.

The number of convenience store outlets also dropped last year to 55,194.

An industry insider noted that Korean convenience stores’ diverse ready-to-eat meals and private label products are well-received overseas.

“In markets where Korean food is already popular, K-convenience stores are expected to have strong competitive potential,” the insider said.

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.
BY KIM KYUNG-MI [[email protected]]