Lotte Members announced Wednesday it has signed a strategic partnership with UnionPay International, a global payment network firm, to expand its L.Point Global Membership service targeting Chinese tourists.
Under the partnership, Chinese customers can sign up for L.Point with only an email verification from within China. When they visit Korea, they can immediately earn points and receive discounts at Lotte department stores, Lotte duty-free shops and Lotte Mart — no additional registration required.
The tie-up is part of Lotte Members' push to capture the Chinese market, its largest tourism target. The company launched a promotional page for Japanese customers in June and is now moving to build a broader loyalty ecosystem to attract foreign tourists ahead of competitors.
Spending by inbound tourists is on the rise. According to the Korea Tourism Organization, foreign tourists' domestic card spending reached 2.1 trillion won ($1.36 billion) in May, up 67.1 percent from the same month a year earlier. Chinese tourists in particular drove overall spending growth through high-end purchases, with their spending more than tripling year on year.
Lotte Members plans to leverage its global membership data to strengthen targeted marketing based on nationality, age and spending patterns. "We hope the combination of both companies' infrastructure will serve as a catalyst to accelerate growth in the tourism market," a company official said.
siuu@heraldcorp.com
