A comparative study between Korea and the USA on the development process in retail trade & its changing locations

소매업의 발달과정과 입지 변화에 관한 한.미 비교 연구

The retail trades in many countries have changed recently according to the high quality, diversification, and marked individuality of consumer needs. Under the continually competing system of the WTO agreement, corporations based in the USA and the EU try to raise their market share in other countries so it is inevitable for Korean retail enterprises to compete with them. This paper is aimed at contributing to the efficient growth for Korean retail trade from the analysis of the development process in retail trade and its changing locations comparing Korea and the USA. Retailers in the USA have practiced diversified marketing strategies considerably in order to survive in a rapidly changing retailing environment. American retailing, which has the most advanced marketing system in the world, has been of growing concern to marketing strategies in Korea. The following is a brief summary of this study. 1. Speedy and higher quality consumption is needed in accordance with the great increase in the single-family household and the female labor force participation both in Korea and in the USA. Senior citizens have become a new consumer group due to the aging population. In the future the retail trade will switch over to diversified retail formats and internet shopping as countries are transformed into information and communication societies. 2. In Korea, the former retail system characterized by markets and department stores has been greatly changed since the late 1980s with emphasis on high quality and convenience in consumption behaviors, with large domestic enterprises and foreign distribution corporations participating in Korean retailing. In the USA, retailing mergers and takeovers by major retails, bankruptcies, and extra-large shopping centers have emerged since the late 1980s. Recently, the USA retailing formats have been changed from the lower price-oriented discount types to the large scale theme parks. Much emphasis was put on entertainment, resorts, and convention centers. On the other hand, non-store types, such as the internet shopping, the CATV shopping, as well as catalog and mail-order sales are drastically increasing, although the proportion of their sales is low up to now. 3. In Korea, most of the retail facilities are concentrated in Seoul and the Metropolitan Region, and the distribution ratio of facilities came to 52% in 1997. The periodic markets, traditional markets which open on a periodic basis, are located mainly in Chollanam-do and Kyungsangbuk-do. The large-sized discount stores have expanded their locations to the over-crowded apartment complexes in new towns, located in the Metropolitan Region, and the large provincial cities, unlike the suburban locations in the USA. Therefore we needed to give attention to the locational relations in retail facilities between Seoul & the Metropolitan Region and rural settlement areas. In the USA, urban areas grew quickly with the development of the automobile in the 1920s, and the location of stores changed from a dispersed style centering around rural areas to a centralized one in urban areas. There is an accelerated growth for suburban areas, which have grown rapidly since 1950. As the membership warehouse clubs were introduced in the 1970s, the decentralization of location was more intensified. On the other hand, inner cities were revitalized by rearranging existing facilities to cope with suburban areas. And the location-free virtual retailing & TV shopping are also growing every year. 4. In view of the above, the continuous and desirable development devices in Korean retail trade are summarized as follows: First, the countermeasures against economies of scale, increase in retailing sales, and rise of a employment percentage in retailing are in need. Second, a scheme of lowering the proportion of food retail sales, and increasing a ratio of durable goods sales need to be worked out. Third, the original ideas are needed to apply positively information, communication and technology to retailing, to graft the traditional types on modem ones based on the social culture. Fourth, strategies are needed to strengthen the competitiveness of our retail trade through cooperation and chains of smaller retailers, the large enterprises participating in the distribution industry. Fifth, in order to realize the above, the retail industry, the administration, and the academic world should support the retail segment with concern and a practical strategy plan.

급변하는 소매업 환경 속에서 각 소매업체는 생존을 위한 다양한 전략을 구사하고 있다. 무한 경쟁 시대를 맞이하여, 유럽 및 미국의 대자본이 포화상태에 달한 자국 시장 대신 해외로 시장을 확대하고 있으므로, 한국의 소매업도 이들과의 경쟁은 불가피한 일이다. 이에 본 연구에서는 한국 및 미국 소매업의 발달과점과 입지 변화를 비교 분석하여, 한국 소매업의 바람직한 발전 방향 모색에 기여하고자 한다. 독창적인 마케팅 전략으로 새로운 업태의 세계적 선두 주자로서 계속 성장하고 있는 미국 소매업의 실체 분석은 한국 소매업의 바람직한 전략 구축의 기반이 된다. 최근, 미국의 소매업은 가격 지향의 할인점 시기를 지나서 고급화, 다양화, 대규모 테마파크화가 진행되고 있다. 이와 함께 입지 면에서는 새로운 교외지역이 성장하는 가운데, 기존 업체의 재정비 재개발로 도시 내부지역이 활성화된다. 그리고 입지가 문제시되지 않는 전자 소매업 TV 홈쇼핑도 성장하고 있다. 한편, 시장과 백화점 중심의 정적(靜的)인 구조를 지속해 오던 한국의 소매업은 1980년대 말 이후 다양한 업종이 소개되면서 급변하고 있다. 특히 1990년대 중반이후에는 대형 할인점이 급성장하고 유통구조의 체계화, 서비스 중심의 소매업으로 새로운 도약의 계기를 마련하고 있다. 한국 소매업의 발전을 위해서는 우선 정보통신 및 기술수준을 적극적으로 활용해야 한다. 나아가 전통과 현대/세계의 접목, 중소 업체의 협동화 같은 독창적인 시도, 그리고 유통업계 행정부 학계의 적극적인 지원이 요구된다.