Woowa Brothers, operator of Baedal Minjok, said on Thursday that key growth indicators for Baemin B Mart, including orders, customers and transaction value, posted the best quarterly results on record in the first quarter. Baemin B Mart is Baedal Minjok's instant-delivery grocery shopping service.

The company said first-quarter Baemin B Mart orders rose 37 percent from a year earlier. Over the same period, customer numbers and transaction value increased 22 percent and 36 percent, respectively. Compared with the previous quarter, orders rose 27 percent and customer numbers increased 21 percent. The cumulative number of customers who placed orders through Baemin B Mart during the first quarter totalled 8 million. The number of consumers who shop through Baemin B Mart 3 times or more a month rose 54 percent from a year earlier.

Woowa Brothers said the expansion of product categories such as fresh food, processed food and daily necessities was effective in delivering the record quarterly performance. It said consumers began to recognise Baemin B Mart as a "main grocery shopping platform." Sales of fresh food, which consumers frequently buy, rose more than 50 percent from a year earlier.

Baemin B Mart diversified its product areas, including private-label products and beauty items, to broaden its customer base and pursue quantitative and qualitative growth at the same time.

Baemin Easy, a private-label brand sold only on Baemin B Mart, strengthened its lineup by increasing the number of stock keeping units by 20 percent from a year earlier. Baemin Easy expanded its range of products priced uniformly at 990 won, including ready-to-cook food, processed food and bottled water. After expanding its product range to include fresh food such as seafood and meat, as well as daily necessities, first-quarter sales rose 98 percent from a year earlier.

It also lowered the psychological burden of prices through promotions such as the lowest-price challenge, daily specials and Japsan Deal, which have been in operation since last year. It also expanded customer benefits by offering Baemin Club subscribers an unlimited 10 percent discount coupon on a permanent basis.

Hyo-jin Lee (이효진), head of the commerce division at Woowa Brothers, said, "Baemin B Mart's fast delivery and competitive products received a positive response from customers, allowing us to achieve the best quarterly performance on record." Lee said, "We will continue growth by gradually expanding into more regions and offering differentiated customer benefits."