On May 10, data from market-research firm ResearchAndMarkets underscored how quickly South Korea’s retail landscape is shifting from next-day shipping to near-instant fulfillment, as e-commerce platforms and traditional retailers compete for dominance in a rapidly expanding quick-commerce market.
The sector is projected to reach $7.5 billion by 2029, up from about $5.5 billion in 2024, expanding at an average annual rate of 6.6%, driven by rising consumer demand for groceries and household goods delivered within an hour.
The race is being led by South Korea’s dominant delivery platforms, including Coupang and Baemin, both of which are rapidly scaling logistics infrastructure to compress delivery times
Coupang has extended its Rocket Delivery infrastructure into ultra-local fulfillment, leveraging its food-delivery arm Coupang Eats to push deeper into small-basket, everyday purchases. The company’s advantage lies in its nationwide logistics network, proprietary delivery workforce and AI-based inventory optimization system, which together allow it to maintain both speed and cost efficiency at scale.
The company is widely viewed as the only operator capable of fully integrating national-scale fulfillment with hyperlocal delivery, built on logistics infrastructure originally designed for next-day shipping.
Baemin, operated by Woowa Brothers, is accelerating its quick-commerce push through its B Mart service. It has expanded its network of urban pick-packing centers across Seoul and major regional cities, including Busan, Daegu and Gwangju, with more than 80 locations now in operation.
These facilities are designed to function as micro-fulfillment hubs, enabling 30- to 60-minute delivery windows. B Mart orders reportedly grew about 70% year over year in 2025, reflecting strong consumer adoption of rapid grocery delivery.
Kurly is deepening its partnership with Naver to strengthen logistics capabilities and counter larger rivals. Kurly recently activated a new fulfillment center in Bucheon and is expanding third-party logistics operations through an additional hub in Ansan.
Together, the companies operate “Kurly N Mart” within Naver’s e-commerce ecosystem, while Kurly also supports overnight delivery for sellers on Naver’s Smart Store platform. The collaboration is increasingly viewed as an effort to build a counterweight to Coupang’s nationwide logistics dominance.
Meanwhile, GS Retail is leaning on its dense convenience-store network to compete in the fast-growing segment. The company is using GS25 stores and GS The Fresh supermarkets as micro-fulfillment points to improve delivery speed and efficiency.
GS The Fresh reported quick-commerce sales growth of 32.8% in the first quarter compared with a year earlier, with the segment approaching 10% of total sales. GS25 is also expanding delivery integration through its “Our Neighborhood GS” mobile platform.
Across the industry, one-hour delivery has effectively become the baseline standard, with some operators now pushing toward 30-minute fulfillment in densely populated urban areas.
The product mix is also broadening beyond groceries to include flowers, stationery and pet supplies, signaling that quick commerce is evolving into a mainstream retail channel rather than a niche service
Still, profitability remains elusive. The model requires dense fulfillment networks, real-time inventory management and large delivery fleets, making it highly capital-intensive.
Executives expect the next phase of competition to hinge on AI-driven demand forecasting, warehouse automation and optimized delivery routing.
“The market will increasingly favor companies that can improve margins through AI-based inventory management and private-label expansion,” one industry executive said. “This is no longer just about speed. It is about who can deliver more products, more efficiently, at lower cost.”
