KT Alpha posts W26.2b operating profit in H1, cites 'dual growth'

KT Alpha said Thursday that its gross merchandise volume and operating profit both grew in the first half of this year, pointing to sustained momentum across its business.

Operating profit for the first half reached 26.2 billion won ($18.5 million), up 0.3 percent from the same period a year earlier. Net profit for the period rose 2.8 percent to 24.7 billion won. Sales fell 2.1 percent year-on-year to 192.5 billion won, but gross merchandise volume — a measure of actual transaction size — climbed 9.0 percent.

The company attributed the sales decline to a deliberate shift in its business mix away from direct purchasing and toward a consignment-based model. Under direct purchasing, the full value of goods sold counts as sales revenue; under consignment arrangements, only the commission is recognized as revenue.

By business segment, gross merchandise volume at KT Alpha Shopping — the company's T-commerce service — rose 3.0 percent in the first half from a year earlier. The company credited a channel diversification strategy that included growing the share of mobile sales, differentiating exclusive brands and expanding its shopping lounge format. Large-scale seasonal promotions such as "Super Shopping K," "Sampae Festival" and "Leports One Day" also contributed to volume growth.

Sales at Giftishow, the company's mobile gift voucher service, rose 4.7 percent to 64.5 billion won in the first half, while gross merchandise volume climbed 14.6 percent to a record high. KT Alpha said the results reflected stronger partnerships with major platforms including Gmarket and Toss, as well as rising demand for integrated gift vouchers. Subscription-type products linked to mobile phone plans and add-on services, along with expanded brand tie-ups for integrated vouchers, also contributed.

KT Alpha marked its 35th anniversary in July by unveiling a management strategy called "SHIFT 2026." The company aims to evolve into a "connected commerce company" that links all of its competitive strengths through AI and data.

KT Alpha Shopping plans to strengthen its product lineup by expanding exclusive brands and curated offerings, and to overhaul the shopping experience through a mobile-first strategy that bridges TV and mobile. Giftishow will launch a customer-configurable integrated gift voucher in the second half of the year and bolster services for corporate clients.

Central to the strategy is AI transformation, which the company plans to apply across products, content, customer engagement and sales channels. KT Alpha will standardize its data infrastructure and build out a company-wide AI foundation to advance AI-powered search, recommendations and personalized curation. The company also aims to use AI to replicate the immediacy and real-time feel of live broadcasts, overcoming the limitations of data-driven home shopping.

"We are maintaining a solid, profitability-focused business structure while driving steady growth in gross merchandise volume through stronger mobile conversion and an improved product lineup," CEO Park Jung-min said. He added that in the second half, the company would expand exclusive T-commerce brands, strengthen its AI-based live-like strategy, grow its B2B client base in the mobile gift voucher business and advance AI-driven customer analytics to further sharpen its competitive edge.