As domestic retailers sell various gift sets ahead of Chuseok, prices for the same products were found to differ by as much as double depending on where they are purchased. Most gift sets were more expensive than buying the items individually.
The Korea Consumer Agency (KCA) on the 25th released results comparing prices of 16 types of food gift sets and six types of household goods sold at big-box stores, department stores, and manufacturers' online malls. All items were priced highest at department stores, while the lowest-priced outlet varied by product. Of the 16 types, eight were cheapest at the manufacturers' own malls, five were cheapest at both the manufacturers' malls and big-box stores (same price), and three were cheapest at big-box stores.
In particular, eight types of canned food sets showed price gaps of up to 68% by retailer, and for five types of seaweed (gim) sets, department store prices were on average 43% higher than discounted big-box store prices or the manufacturers' own malls. For six types of household goods, department store prices were nearly double the discounted prices at big-box stores.
The perception that sets are cheaper also proved false. The agency analyzed 43 sets that could be purchased as individual items at manufacturers' own malls and found that in 84% (36 types), the set price was higher than the sum of the individual items. When the set was more expensive, the average difference was about 25%. The analysis said this reflects additional holiday packaging and marketing expenses.
Of the 116 types sold identically during the Chuseok season last year and this year, more than half—59—had no price changes. However, 50 were found to have increased.
The agency plans to recommend that each retailer provide clearer notices of product names and components going forward. Jeong Go-un, head of the price survey team at the agency, said, "Consumers need to carefully check price differences by sales channel, discounts, and components when choosing gift sets."