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Lotte Shopping continued its earnings recovery, driven by top-line growth in its department store division. Despite weakness at Lotte Hi-Mart and Cultureworks, its department store division grew on the back of rising sales to foreign customers, more than doubling overall operating profit.
On the 7th, Lotte Shopping said its second-quarter consolidated operating profit reached 89.9 billion won, up 121% from a year earlier. Revenue over the same period rose 4% year-on-year to 3.485 trillion won. Net profit turned to a profit of 14.6 billion won.
Lotte Shopping's second-quarter results were led by the department store division. Sales rose across all product categories, centered on fashion, along with growth in sales to foreign tourists. Both domestic department stores and overseas operations grew. According to Lotte Shopping, the department store division posted revenue of 891.2 billion won, up 9.2% from a year earlier, setting a record high for a second quarter.
Profitability improvements were also led by the department store division's growth. The division's second-quarter operating profit reached 119.7 billion won, up 84% year-on-year. Domestic department store operating profit rose 77.6% from a year earlier, while overseas department store operating profit surged 309.7%. In particular, Lotte Mall West Lake Hanoi set a record operating profit for a sixth consecutive quarter, with overseas operations standing out.
The mart division's second-quarter revenue rose 2.6% year-on-year to 1.3295 trillion won. It posted an operating loss of 37.8 billion won, but the loss narrowed from a year earlier. Although one-time costs from voluntary retirements were reflected, the operating loss shrank as the sales recovery continued.
The mart division's overseas operations posted revenue of 350.6 billion won, up 0.2% year-on-year, but operating profit fell 51.5% to 4.3 billion won. Weakening consumer sentiment in Indonesia weighed on the profit scale of overall overseas operations. In Vietnam, operating profit rose amid broad-based sales growth centered on renovated stores.
The e-commerce division posted second-quarter revenue of 26.2 billion won, down 1.5% year-on-year. Its operating loss narrowed to 7.4 billion won. The home shopping division achieved notable profitability improvements, with operating profit rising 62% year-on-year to 19.9 billion won. Analysts attribute this to maintaining a qualitative growth strategy focused on high-efficiency products amid a low-growth phase. The home shopping division's revenue rose 3.3% year-on-year to 238.6 billion won.
Hi-Mart posted second-quarter revenue of 591.1 billion won, down 0.5% year-on-year. Operating profit over the same period fell 90.7% to 1 billion won. Cultureworks posted an operating loss of 13.7 billion won due to the recognition of one-time losses in its content business. However, buoyed by domestic box-office hits and higher average spending on tickets and concessions, second-quarter revenue rose 15.5% year-on-year to 106.1 billion won, achieving top-line growth.
Lotte Shopping's cumulative first-half revenue rose 3.8% year-on-year to 7.0666 trillion won, and operating profit rose 81.5% to 342.8 billion won.
Lim Jae-cheol, head of Lotte Shopping's finance division, stressed, "The solid performance of domestic and overseas department stores, combined with company-wide efforts to improve profitability, delivered a meaningful earnings rebound in both the second quarter and the first half," adding, "We will continue to further strengthen the fundamental competitiveness of our core businesses and maintain a stable growth trajectory through continuous structural improvements."
