1994-
Pioneering1994~1997
GS Home Shopping (GSHS) is an industry pioneer that launched Korea’s first-ever television-based home shopping programming in August 1995. TV home shopping is a cutting-edge distribution channel that integrates television broadcasting and retail. It minimizes distribution margins to provide consumers with the highest-quality products at the most affordable prices.
GSHS continued along the path of an industry trailblazer. We became the first in the industry to launch a 24-hour TV shopping network. We were also the first to computerize our sales system, enabling real-time monitoring of consumer responses, and in turn, raising the quality of our product selection and programming. We branched out to catalog shopping, and thus, the basic framework for a multimedia retailer started coming into shape.
1998-
Turning crisis1998-2001
As with most of Asia, Korea was hit by the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis. The economy fell into a deep slump. Consumer spending fell dramatically and many businesses struggled to survive. The Asian Financial Crisis, however, proved to be a valuable opportunity for GS Home Shopping(GSHS) as it brought us into contact with SMEs that possessed quality product lineups but were struggling in terms of sales. Thereafter, GSHS expanded at an explosive average annual growth rate of 100%. Based on this growth momentum, we launched the online shopping mall LGeShop(Currently GS SHOP) in May 2000. Then in 2001, we became the first in the industry to hit the 1 trillion-won mark in terms of transaction amount. In the same year, we received the Presidential Award at the Korea Distribution Awards. GSHS thus became a bona fide leader in the multimedia retail industry.
2002-
Reinforcing2002~2006
In 2002, GS Home Shopping(GSHS) implemented an integrated ERP (enterprise resource planning)-CRM (customer relationship management) system. The cutting-edge system enabled us to unveil innovative customer service features, including the delivery date notification service and online previews of products for upcoming TV home shopping broadcasts. We also enhanced the quality of our programming by setting up Korea’s first TV home shopping broadcasting center and enhanced the competitiveness of our shipping services by establishing our own logistics center. In the meantime, GSHS began satellite broadcasting and launched T-commerce, M-commerce, and other new media services to keep abreast with the ever-evolving broadcasting and communications market and make thorough long-term preparations.
2007-
First Home Shopping company to exceed 2-trillion KRW in revenue2007~2010
After Mr. Huh became the CEO in 2007, GS SHOP began to place more efforts on its social duties and responsibilities as the leading company in the online shopping industry. The company especially focused on expanding social contribution activities for children such as ‘Knit One Save One’ campaign for African newborn babies that the company has started several years ago.
The company also emphasized and reinforced ‘customer-centric’ mindset among its employees to become an organization that prioritizes its customers in everything it does. In Nov. 2009, the company integrated all its brands for TV, internet, catalog and mobile shopping services under the new ‘GS SHOP’ brand to serve its customers with a single brand in all of its sales channels.
As the results of these efforts, GS SHOP has been awarded the ‘Most Respected Corporation’4 years running from 2008 to 2011, and set a new milestone by exceeding 2 tril. KRW in annual sales revenue in 2010 for the first time in Home Shopping industry.
2011-
World and Future as the New Growth Engine2011~Present
GS SHOP is building the ‘Asian Home Shopping Belt’ by actively entering emerging markets such as China, India, Thailand, Vietnam and more in an effort to overcome the limitations of saturated Korean TV Shopping market.
The company is also cultivating steady growth in the domestic market as well by taking internet shopping, which currently shows the highest growth among all retail channels, and mobile shopping, which is expected to grow with the increase of smart phone users, as new growth engines.
GS SHOP will leap into a global online shopping service provider by pioneering the world markets and the future of retail industry!
