Shinsegae facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Shinsegae Inc.

Native name	주식회사 신세계
Type	Public
Traded as	KRX: 004170
Industry	Retail
Predecessor	Mitsukoshi Keijō (Gyeongseong) Store
Founded	9 December 1955; 69 years ago (1955-12-09)
Founder	Original store acquired by Lee Byung-chul
Headquarters	63 Sogong-ro, Jung District, Seoul, South Korea
Area served	South Korea
Key people	Lee Myung-hee (Chairwoman) Chung Yong-jin (Vice Chairman) Cha Jeong-ho (CEO)
Owner	Estate of Lee Myung-hee (28.56%) National Pension Service (12.16%)
Parent	Samsung (1955–1997) Independent (1997–present)
Subsidiaries	E-mart

Shinsegae Inc. (Hangul: 신세계; Hanja: 新世界, KRX: 004170) is a big company in South Korea. It runs many department stores and other businesses. Shinsegae is based in Seoul, the capital city of South Korea.

It is part of the Shinsegae Group, which is one of South Korea's top retail groups. Shinsegae is one of the three largest department store companies in Korea. Its main store in Centum City, Busan, was the largest department store in the world in 2009. It was even bigger than Macy's famous store in New York City.

Shinsegae was also the first company in South Korea to offer credit cards. They had their own charge card from 1967 until 2000. Later, they sold this part of their business.

Shinsegae used to be part of the Samsung Group, a very large company. But in the 1990s, Shinsegae became its own independent company. The chairwoman, Lee Myung-hee, is the daughter of Samsung's founder.

Shinsegae owns popular brands like Shinsegae and E-Mart. They compete with other big retail companies in Korea.

A Look at Shinsegae's Past

Main store in Seoul when it was called Mitsukoshi

The main Shinsegae store in Seoul is the oldest department store in Korea. It first opened in 1930. Back then, it was a branch of a Japanese department store called Mitsukoshi. Korea was under Japanese rule at that time.

In 1945, after the Japanese rule ended, the founder of the Samsung Group, Lee Byung-chull, bought the store. He renamed it Donghwa Department Store. After the Korean War (1950–1953), the American army used it for a few years. In 1963, the store was given its current name, Shinsegae. The old building is still used today for luxury shopping.

In 2021, Shinsegae Group bought a baseball team called the SK Wyverns. They renamed the team the SSG Landers. This team plays in the KBO League, which is South Korea's main baseball league.

In October 2024, Shinsegae Group announced that it would separate its department store and supermarket businesses into two different companies.

Daejeon Shinsegae: Art and Science Fun

The Shinsegae store in Daejeon opened in 2021. It's a very special place because it's more than just a department store. It combines shopping with art, science, a hotel, and offices.

This huge complex cost a lot of money to build. It has a main department store area called Podium and a tall building called EXPO Tower.

What You'll Find in the Podium

The Podium area has many cool things:

• A Food Hall in the basement where you can find lots of tasty food.
• The main floor has fancy brands for accessories, jewelry, and beauty products.
• The second floor sells luxury fashion for men and women. The designers made it look like a modern sculpture park.
• The third floor has more fashion.
• The fourth floor is for sports, golf, outdoor gear, underwear, and kids' items.
• The fifth floor has a food hall designed to look like a street in Verona, Italy.

Exploring the EXPO Tower

The EXPO Tower is a tall building with 43 floors. It's 193 meters high!

• It has a hotel with 171 rooms on 11 floors.
• The Art Space 193 is an observatory at the top. It has a colorful art display by artist Ólafur Elíasson.
• Shinsegae Nexperium is a science museum. It focuses on robots, biotechnology, and space. It was created with the help of KAIST, a famous research university.
• Daejeon Expo Aquarium is an aquarium that uses multimedia art. It has a huge tank with about 20,000 fish from 250 different types. It tells a story about Poseidon, the Greek god of the sea.

Other Cool Spots to Visit

The Daejeon complex also has:

• A Lego Shop where you can find all sorts of Lego sets.
• A Dolby Cinema Megabox with 7 screens for watching movies.
• The Shinsegae Academy offers educational programs.
• The Shinsegae Gallery is an art exhibition space.
• On the 6th floor, there's a glass window gallery and art terrace with a great view.
• The Hella fun City is a public center for Daejeon.

Daejeon Store Images

Centum City Store Images

• 

  Exterior of the Centum City store

• 

  Inside view of the Lightwell

• 

  The Sky Garden

Shinsegae Stores Across Korea

Shinsegae has many department stores in different cities. Here are some of them:

Store		Size (sq m)	City	Location / Notes	Photo
English	Korean
Centum City	센텀시티	293,905	Busan	Located in Centum City, Hae-undae-gu. This was once the world's largest department store.
Uijeongbu	의정부점	145,000	Uijeongbu	In Gyeonggi Province.
Daejeon Shinsegae Art & Science	대전신세계 Art & Science	88,572 (department store area)	Daejeon	Opened in 2021. This is a huge complex with art, science, and shopping.
Myeongdong Main Store	본점 본관, 신관	56,528	Seoul	In Jung-gu. It has a Main Building and a New Building.
Yeongdeungpo	영등포점 A관, B관, 명품관	43,305	Seoul	In Times Square (shopping mall), Yeongdeungpo-gu. It has Building A, Building B, and a Luxury Hall.
Gangnam	강남점 본관, 신관	43,305	Seoul	In Seocho-gu, near the express bus terminal. This is a very popular store.
Masan	마산점	26,115	Masan	In Happo-gu, Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province.
Gwangju	광주신세계	22,611	Gwangju	In Seo-gu.
Arario Chungcheong	충청점		Cheon-an	In Dongnam-gu, South Chungcheong Province.
Daegu	대구신세계		Daegu	Located at Dongdaegu Station. It has an aquarium and many restaurants.
Gimhae	김해점		Gimhae	In South Gyeongsang Province.
Gyeonggi (formerly Jukjeon)	경기점		Yong-in	In Suji-gu, Gyeonggi Province. Its name changed in 2009.
Hanam	하남점		Hanam	In Gyeonggi Province. It's inside the Starfield Hanam shopping mall. This mall has a cinema, bookstore, and even car showrooms.

Shinsegae also has a small store at Incheon International Airport. There is also a supermarket in Dogok-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul.

In 2010, Shinsegae launched Shinsegae Style Market. These are smaller shopping malls for young customers. Even though they have "Shinsegae" in their name, they are managed by E-Mart.

Former Stores

Some Shinsegae stores have closed over the years. For example, the Daegu Store closed in 1976. The Cheonho Store and Mia Store were later changed into E-Mart stores.

E-Mart: Shinsegae's Discount Stores

E-Mart (Hangul: 이마트) is a large chain of discount stores. It is a part of Shinsegae. E-Mart has stores in South Korea, China, and Mongolia. In South Korea, E-Mart is the biggest discount store chain.

In 2006, Shinsegae bought all 16 Wal-Mart stores in Korea. These stores were then changed into E-Mart stores. Wal-Mart left the Korean market after this.

In 2012, Shinsegae made E-Mart a separate company.

SSG: Shopping Online

SSG Food Market, Gangnam

SSG (pronounced "sseuk") is an online shopping website. Shinsegae started it in 2014. On SSG, you can buy products from many Shinsegae companies. This includes Shinsegae Department Store, E-Mart, and other brands.

Shinsegae's Other Businesses

Shinsegae Group owns many different companies. Here are some of them:

• Central City (a large complex in Seoul)
• E-Mart (discount stores)
  • Gmarket Global (an online marketplace)
    • Auction Co.
    • G9
    • G-Market
• Gwangju Shinsegae (another department store)
• Seoul Express Bus Terminal
• Shinsegae I&C (IT services)
• Shinsegae Chelsea (outlet malls)
• Shinsegae Construction (building things)
• Shinsegae Dongdaegu CTC (part of the Daegu store)
• Shinsegae Food System (food services)
  • No Brand Burger (a burger chain)
• Shinsegae International (fashion and cosmetics)
• Starbucks Coffee Korea (coffee shops)
• Johnny Rockets (restaurants)
• Josun Hotel & Resort (hotels)
• Emart24 (convenience stores)
• Casamia (home furnishings)
• Mindmark [ko] (media content)
  • SILKWOOD
  • Studio 329
• CHICOR (beauty stores)

See also

• Hyundai Department Store Group
• Homeplus