Three years after retreating, Coupang extends delivery window by two hours and expands nationwide; app downloads top 6 million
Coupang Inc's food delivery service in Japan, Rocket Now, has extended its operating hours to 4 a.m. as the company ramps up investment in the market alongside its rocket delivery and Farfetch operations in Taiwan.
Rocket Now expanded its delivery window from 7 a.m. to 4 a.m. the following day starting May 19, up from the previous hours of 8 a.m. to 3 a.m. "The extended hours are intended to improve the convenience of food delivery," a Rocket Now spokesperson said.
Coupang Eats, the company's domestic food delivery platform, also introduced 24-hour delivery service in six major metropolitan cities across South Korea starting May 19. Coupang Eats operates delivery services in partnership with convenience store chains CU and GS25. Rocket Now in Japan is expected to follow a similar path, gradually expanding its delivery hours.
Coupang launched Rocket Now in January last year, initially covering select areas of Tokyo. The service has since expanded to Japan's five major cities — Osaka, Nagoya, Fukuoka and Sapporo among them — and is continuing its nationwide rollout. Combined downloads on Google Play and the Apple App Store have surpassed 6 million since launch.
This is not Coupang's first foray into Japan. In June 2021, the company established a local subsidiary, Coupang Japan, and ran a pilot quick-commerce service in parts of Tokyo promising delivery in as little as 10 minutes. The venture struggled with the high costs of building micro-fulfillment centers in urban areas and ran into resistance from Japan's cash-heavy consumer culture, leading Coupang to exit the market in March 2023 after roughly two years.
The renewed push into Japan comes after Coupang validated the model in Taiwan, where it is growing its rocket delivery and Farfetch businesses. The company opened its fourth logistics center there in March, and rocket delivery now covers 70 percent of the island. Sales from that business reached $4.94 billion (about 7 trillion won) last year, up roughly 38 percent from the prior year, while investment hit a record $995 million (about 1.41 trillion won).
Costs remain the central challenge at this early stage. In the first quarter, the adjusted EBITDA loss for Coupang's "developing offerings" segment widened 96 percent year over year to $329 million (about 482 billion won), even as sales grew 28 percent to $1.33 billion (about 1.95 trillion won). The expanding top line has come at the expense of profitability, underscoring how critical early returns will be for Rocket Now in Japan.
Coupang Inc Chairman Bom Kim addressed the Japan venture during an earnings conference call in February. "Through the Rocket Now business, we've gained a better understanding of the market opportunity and the value customers are looking for," he said. "While still in the early stages, customer retention and engagement trends are promising."
korean@heraldcorp.com
