Daiso, South Korea's largest uniform-price retailer, has shed its old image as a store offering cheap but low-quality goods, repositioning itself as a lifestyle platform that delivers both affordability and quality. Riding a pricing policy that caps all items at 5,000 won ($3.60) and an expanding product range, the retailer is now winning over consumers on quality as well.
WiseApp·Retail, a market and competitor analysis platform based on real-time app and payment data, released findings on Daiso Mall's monthly active users (MAU) and payment data on the 24th.
Based on a sample survey of Korean smartphone users on both Android and iOS, Daiso Mall's app users reached 5.16 million in February this year — an all-time high since the app's launch and a 42% increase from 3.62 million in the same month a year earlier.
A separate sample survey of Korean credit and debit card payments showed Daiso's estimated transaction value reached 469.7 billion won in the same period, a 16% increase from 403.2 billion won a year earlier.
Beauty has been the core category driving this growth. Daiso's cosmetics lineup, which stood at just 26 brands and roughly 250 products at the end of 2023, more than doubled within a year to 60 brands and about 500 products. Despite uniform pricing of 3,000 to 5,000 won, word-of-mouth about the quality prompted even major corporations to develop Daiso-exclusive products.
"Mimo by Mamonde," a skincare brand launched by Amorepacific (090430.KS), surpassed 1 million cumulative units sold just four months after entering Daiso. VT Cosmetics' "Reedle Shot Ampoule" and Son & Park's multi-color balm repeatedly sold out, creating the so-called "Daiso Beauty" syndrome.
Growth is not limited to beauty. Apparel has emerged as a new pillar. Daiso's apparel segment posted a 34% year-on-year sales increase in 2024, and its thermal innerwear "Easy Warm" series surged approximately 48% over the same period.
Last year, Daiso partnered with sports brands Le Coq Sportif and Skechers to offer functional T-shirts priced between 3,000 and 5,000 won. Le Coq Sportif's "Sports Short-Sleeve T-Shirt" sold out in some sizes at most stores within two weeks of launch and was completely sold out within three weeks.
As prolonged high inflation drives consumers to handle daily necessities, fashion, and beauty in a single Daiso trip, the retailer is expanding beyond a simple uniform-price store into a full-scale lifestyle platform.
Daiso was initially known as a "1,000-won shop" and perceived by consumers simply as a place to buy cheap goods. However, through more than 20 years of steady quality improvements, expansion of its private-label merchandise, and joint development with suppliers, it has transformed into a brand offering practical products at reasonable prices.
Daiso currently operates more than 1,600 stores nationwide, with the store count steadily increasing in recent years. Having grown beyond a simple household goods store into a national lifestyle platform, it has created more than 12,000 jobs. Its pricing structure has also evolved from a flat 1,000-won model to a six-tier uniform pricing system of 500, 1,000, 1,500, 2,000, 3,000, and 5,000 won.
