Why did Lotte Department Store remove the Chinese slogan?

Since March 24, in business districts such as the Lotte Department Store and 7-11 convenience stores in Myeongdong, Seoul, where many Chinese tourists gather, signs written in Chinese that read "Because I understand, so "Waiting" text. At the same time, posters with the same sentence can be seen everywhere at the front entrance of Lotte Department Store Jamsil store, customer lounges, indoor corridors, escalators and other places.

The relevant person in charge of Lotte Group said: "This is to hope that the conflicts between the two countries will be resolved as soon as possible and the friendly relations in the past will be restored as soon as possible." Korean media also understood this as China's official implementation of the "South Korea Travel Ban". Sales at Lotte Department Stores and duty-free stores plummeted.

However, on the 25th, placards written only in Japanese and English were erected at the main store of Lotte Department Store in Jung-gu, Seoul. The Chinese placards that were everywhere a month ago have recently been removed. An article in South Korea's "Asia Economy" on the 26th described this scene. In this regard, a person related to Lotte Department Store said: "We are changing our policy to attract Chinese tourists."

According to reports, Lotte Group initially adopted a quiet wait-and-see approach, but this approach has recently A shift is taking place. Kim Dae-soo, head of the marketing department of Lotte Department Store, said: "We are conducting various promotions to attract tourists from various countries and regions around the world, such as Japan, Southeast Asia and the Middle East."

Due to the sharp decline in Chinese tourists, , Lotte Department Store main store sales decreased by 20-30%. Chinese spending at Lotte Department Store once accounted for 88% of foreigners' overall spending, but this dropped to 72% in March this year, a decrease of 16 percentage points. The proportion of consumption by Japanese tourists has increased. In order to increase sales, Lotte Department Store began actively attracting foreign tourists from other countries. This is why Rakuten removed its Chinese slogan.