GS25
Native name
Korean name
Hangul
지에스25
Revised RomanizationJieseu25
McCune–ReischauerChiesŭ25
FormerlyLG25 (1990–2005)
Company typeSubsidiary
IndustryConvenience stores
Founded1990 (34 years ago) (1990)
HeadquartersGS Tower, 508 Nonhyeon-ro, Gangnam-gu,
Seoul
,
South Korea, 06141
Number of locations
14,688 (as of end of 2020)
Areas served
Key people
Yeon-soo Huh (NED)[1]
ParentGS Retail

GS25 (Korean: 지에스25) is a South Korean chain of convenience stores operated and owned by GS Retail, a subsidiary company of the GS Group. The headquarters of the company are located at the GS Tower in Gangnam-gu, Seoul.[2] As of June 9, 2020, GS25 operates 13,899 stores.[3]

GS25 is known for having hundreds of locations all over South Korea. They are also known for their large variety of drinks such as different flavored milks and iced beverages. They also carry a variety of Korean snacks as well as ramen, fish cakes, and kimbabs.

History

Logo used from 2005 to 2019

GS25, then known as LG25, opened their first store in Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul in 1990.[4] However, in 2005, GS Group split from the LG Corporation, the name of LG25 was correspondingly changed to GS25.[5] In March 2019, GS25 changed their brand identity for the first time since changing their name to GS25. With the new identity, a new slogan of "Lifestyle Platform" began to be applied to all new store signage.[6] However, as of August 2019, most stores still use the former identity.[citation needed]

Foreign operations

Vietnam

In January 2018, GS25 ventured outside of South Korea for the first time in its history by launching a store in Ho Chi Minh City. As of April 2023, GS25 operates 213 stores throughout Vietnam.[7][8][9]

Mongolia

Through a collaborative investment between the Shunkhlai Group and GS Retail, Digital Concept was established, securing the master franchise rights for the renowned GS25 brand. On May 18, 2021, GS25 officially opened in Mongolia with three stores in Ulaanbaatar. As of December 18, 2022, GS25 has opened 124 stores throughout Ulaanbaatar. As of April 27, 2023, the company has opened 2 stores in Darkhan, the second-largest city in Mongolia. Two years after its establishment, Digital Concept LLC achieved a prominent position as one of Mongolia's "TOP 100 Companies" and expanded its retail presence from over 200 stores, with plans to reach 300.

Malaysia

Malaysia-based KK Super Mart has announced to partnered with GS Retail to launch GS25 in Malaysia following the trend of Korean convenience stores, which both CU & e-mart24 has already arrived in the country. The first outlet will set to be launched on 2023 while targeting to launch 500 outlets within five years.[10][11]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Board of Directors". gs.co.kr. September 3, 2020. Archived from the original on September 22, 2020. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  2. ^ "Location". gs.co.kr. September 3, 2020. Archived from the original on September 22, 2020. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  3. ^ Oh, Sang-yong (June 9, 2020). "South Korea: Retail Foods". USDA.gov. United States Department of Agriculture. p. 06. Archived from the original on October 28, 2020. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  4. ^ "GS25, a local convenience store that celebrates its 30th anniversary. "This year's message is 'Sincere'". gs25.gsretail.com (in Korean). 2 January 2020. Archived from the original on 2022-09-20. Retrieved 2022-09-20.
  5. ^ Kim, Ji-soo (January 27, 2005). "GS formally splits from LG". Korea JoongAng Daily. JoongAng Ilbo. Archived from the original on March 17, 2023. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  6. ^ Jeon, Young-sun (March 27, 2019). "GS25 14년 사용 브랜드 이미지 교체". JoongAng Ilbo (in Korean). Archived from the original on March 27, 2019. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  7. ^ "GS25, 베트남 본격 공략…올 260개 매장 목표 - 베트남 교민잡지 ! 씬짜오 베트남" [GS25, full-fledged invasion of Vietnam... Goal of opening 260 stores this year]. Xin Caho Vietnam (in Korean). 2022-06-01. Archived from the original on 2022-09-20. Retrieved September 20, 2022.
  8. ^ "GS25, 베트남 출점 가속도…현지 평가 '긍정적' - 베트남 교민잡지 ! 씬짜오 베트남" [GS25, Vietnamese store opening acceleration... Local evaluation 'Positive']. Xin Caho Vietnam (in Korean). 2023-03-04. Archived from the original on 2023-03-12. Retrieved 2023-05-08.
  9. ^ "GS25, 베트남사업 공격적 확장에 손실도 심각 - 베트남 교민잡지 ! 씬짜오 베트남" [GS25 has serious losses due to the aggressive expansion of its business in Vietnam]. Xin Caho Vietnam (in Korean). 2023-04-11. Retrieved 2023-05-08.
  10. ^ Tae-Hee, Lee (July 11, 2022). "GS25 heads to Malaysia with plans to open next year". Korea JoongAng Daily. Archived from the original on August 19, 2022. Retrieved August 19, 2022.
  11. ^ Chuan, Rachel (July 13, 2022). "South Korean Convenience Chain Store GS25 To Open In Malaysia". Hype Malaysia. Archived from the original on August 11, 2022. Retrieved August 19, 2022.
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