Umbrellas, sports drinks and ice also see sharp sales gains; non-alcoholic beer surges as match kicks off on weekday morning
By Jung Yoon-hee, The Herald Business
Convenience stores near Gwanghwamun Square in Seoul saw a surge in business on Friday, as South Korea's national football team pulled off a dramatic comeback victory over the Czech Republic in the opening group-stage match of the 2026 North America World Cup.
Beer sales at some stores jumped 180-fold, while sports drinks and ice also sold briskly. Non-alcoholic beer performed well given the weekday morning kickoff, and umbrella sales spiked as fans sought shade from the summer heat.
GS25 stores near Gwanghwamun posted overall sales 25.1 percent higher on Friday compared with a week earlier, according to Yonhap News Agency and retail industry data released Saturday. Narrowing the window to 9 a.m. through 1 p.m. — before and after the match — the sales increase reached 85.7 percent.
Among individual products, non-alcoholic beer led all categories with a roughly 14.6-fold increase (up 1,367.8 percent). Regular beer rose about 5.9-fold (490.6 percent) and soju about 2.8-fold (178.3 percent). Other top sellers included snacks, up 3.5-fold (254.8 percent); chicken, up 2.6-fold (158.7 percent); ice cups, up fivefold (401.9 percent); bar snacks, up 87.5 percent; and wet wipes, up 81.1 percent.
About 10 CU stores near Gwanghwamun recorded combined sales 3.4 times higher on Friday compared with the same day the previous week.
At those CU locations, ice led the gains at 6.1-fold (510.3 percent), followed by iced drinks at sixfold (495.8 percent), sports and ion drinks at 5.8-fold (480.9 percent), ice cream at 5.1-fold (409.2 percent), bottled water at 4.9-fold (394.7 percent) and beer at 4.1-fold (310.1 percent).
With crowds looking to eat brunch on the street, ready-to-eat foods all jumped: kimbap rose 3.1-fold (214.3 percent), triangle kimbap threefold (202.5 percent) and sandwiches 2.8-fold (183.1 percent).
Demand for snacks and drinking accompaniments was also strong — snack foods rose 3.1-fold (211.6 percent), bread 2.6-fold (159.9 percent), desserts 2.3-fold (126.7 percent) and meat snacks such as beef jerky 2.1-fold (113.2 percent).
The outdoor setting drove strong sales of accessories as well: portable battery packs surged 7.4-fold (640.2 percent), phone cables and accessories 6.3-fold (525.5 percent), picnic mats 5.1-fold (410.1 percent), wet wipes fivefold (396.4 percent) and sunscreen 2.6-fold (160.3 percent).
Ten 7-Eleven stores near Gwanghwamun Square saw sales jump 4.2-fold (up 318 percent) between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Friday compared with the same period a week earlier.
Beer sales at those stores soared 180-fold. Umbrella sales rose 24-fold as fans used black full-length umbrellas to block the sun.
Sports and ion drinks climbed 9.7-fold (871 percent), ice 6.2-fold (521 percent), bottled water 5.1-fold (411 percent), chilled desserts 3.7-fold (268 percent) and refrigerated foods 3.3-fold (234 percent).
E-mart24 stores near Gwanghwamun posted sales 59 percent higher than the previous week. Sandwiches recorded the biggest gain at 142 percent, followed by hamburgers (128 percent), bread (96 percent) and triangle kimbap (60 percent).
Pouch drinks rose 104 percent, carbonated and sports drinks 77 percent and bottled water 40 percent.
Beer sales at E-mart24 rose 3.2-fold (218 percent) week on week, while bar snacks and chips climbed 63 percent and 65 percent respectively. Portable chargers and charging cables also rose 3.8-fold (275 percent), reflecting the large outdoor crowd.
A 7-Eleven near Yeouido, where Korea Investment & Securities set up a cheering venue with roughly 1,200 seats, saw sales double between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Friday compared with a week earlier. Top sellers there included beer, ice cream, instant fried chicken, umbrellas, ion drinks, bottled water, ramyun, snacks and various ready-to-eat meals.
"A large number of football fans flocked to Gwanghwamun for the street cheering, and sales at nearby convenience stores jumped well above normal levels," a retail industry official said.
yuni@heraldcorp.com
