The delivery platform is considering expanding free delivery benefits beyond Wow members.
Its 24-hour convenience store delivery tie-up could help narrow the gap with Baemin.
Kim Myung-kyu, CEO of Coupang Eats Service.
[Insight Korea = Lee Suk-yeong]
Coupang Eats is continuing its aggressive push in the food delivery app market. From expanding free delivery benefits to working with convenience store chains, the company is rapidly broadening its business scope and accelerating efforts to raise its market share.
According to retail industry sources on the 18th, Coupang Eats is considering expanding free delivery benefits, which had been limited to Wow membership members, to general users. Some say the company has entered final preparations with the goal of launching the measure as early as the 22nd.
Coupang Eats says, however, that nothing has been finalized. The idea was presented last month as one of the coexistence measures during discussions on delivery app cooperation led by the Euljiro Committee of the Democratic Party of Korea. Since then, no additional decision has been made, leaving the issue subject to further observation.
Coupang Eats Moves Amid Market Reshuffle
The potential move is drawing attention because it comes at a time of major change in the delivery app market. Above all, rumors of a sale of Baedal Minjok, better known as Baemin, are becoming more concrete. Its parent company, Delivery Hero, is moving to reorganize its global business and has selected JPMorgan as the lead manager for the sale of Baemin.
Delivery Hero’s desired sale price is reportedly about 8 trillion won, nearly twice the amount it paid at the time of acquisition. To pursue the sale, JPMorgan is said to have sent investment teasers to several domestic and overseas companies, including NAVER, Uber in the United States and Alibaba in China.
Industry observers see Coupang Eats’ aggressive moves as a strategic choice aimed at this shifting competitive landscape. The analysis is that Coupang Eats is trying to use the uncertainty surrounding Baemin’s search for a new owner as an opportunity to raise its market share.
Coupang Eats’ monthly active users, or MAU, have indeed been rising every month. According to Mobile Index, Coupang Eats’ MAU increased from the 10 million range in April last year to the 13 million range in March this year. The MAU gap with Baemin is also narrowing.
Along with the possible expansion of free delivery, its collaboration with convenience store chains is also notable. Convenience stores including CU and GS25 said they would expand their delivery services through Coupang Eats to a 24-hour operating system starting the same day. Deliveries will now be available during the previously uncovered period between 3 a.m. and 6 a.m.
Baemin’s Baemin 1 Plus delivery service operates from 6 a.m. to 3 a.m. the following day, leaving a gap between 3 a.m. and 6 a.m. For Coupang Eats, the partnership offers the advantage of occupying that empty time slot while using nationwide convenience store networks as instant delivery bases.
CEO Kim Myung-kyu Leads Coupang Eats Marketing
At the center of Coupang Eats’ recent aggressive strategy is CEO Kim Myung-kyu. Kim worked at Samsung Card and NAVER before joining Coupang in 2014. At Coupang, he served as head of logistics policy, overseeing mid- to long-term strategy planning, before becoming CEO of Coupang Eats Service in 2022.
After taking office, Kim significantly strengthened Coupang Eats’ marketing. He became especially prominent after the company shifted from a two-CEO structure to a sole CEO system in 2023. In March 2024, Coupang Eats launched unlimited free delivery for Wow membership members and also rolled out a large-scale discount coupon campaign.
As a result, Coupang Eats has settled into second place in the industry and is now threatening Baemin’s position. Industry observers believe that because Coupang has grown through aggressive benefit offerings, the free delivery for non-members currently under discussion could help expand its market share if implemented.
Coupang Eats, however, is cautious in its comments. The company has indicated that even if free delivery for non-members is introduced, it would likely be for a short period. A Coupang Eats official said, “Nothing has been finalized regarding free delivery benefits for non-members.”
- This article was translated by ChatGPT. (이 기사는 챗GPT가 번역했습니다.)
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