GS25 eyes Cambodia entry as rival E-mart24 faces store defections

Convenience store chain GS25 is on the verge of entering Cambodia, which would mark its third overseas market after Vietnam and Mongolia. The move is part of a broader push to find new growth engines beyond a saturated domestic market, but signs of an early clash with a rival are already emerging.

GS25 completed trademark registration in Cambodia earlier this month, the company confirmed Monday. "It is true that we recently finished registering our trademark in Cambodia," a GS25 spokesperson said. "This is part of our efforts to explore entry into various countries." The spokesperson added that no decision had been made on whether to open or operate stores there.

GS25 has been steadily building its overseas footprint since entering Vietnam in 2018. Its Vietnamese store count grew rapidly from 26 in its first year to 443 today. After entering Mongolia in 2021, the chain now operates 299 stores there. Should it move forward in Cambodia, the company is expected to expand its presence quickly.

Cambodia has drawn growing attention as an emerging market in Southeast Asia, with a population more than five times that of Mongolia, a low median age and a high birth rate. Among domestic convenience store operators, E-mart24 was the first to enter, in 2024. In a market previously dominated by Thai capital, it quickly gained traction by catering to local consumers' affinity for Korean culture — offering K-food products such as Han River ramyun. Within roughly two years, its store count had grown to 27 locations.

In Cambodia, however, concerns are mounting that GS25's entry could escalate beyond competition into outright conflict with E-mart24. This month, several E-mart24 stores in prime commercial areas abruptly suspended operations and went dark. A total of seven stores walked away — all reported to be among the chain's top performers by sales. The circumstances have prompted unusually open talk locally about intensifying competition between Korean companies.

According to a local media outlet, Kim Sung-su, chairman of the Korea-Cambodia Chamber of Commerce and Industry, recently weighed in on Korean convenience store chains entering Cambodia, saying: "The moment a dispute or conflict between Korean companies spills into the open, the damage will not be limited to any one company."

The local E-mart24 operator has retained a Cambodian attorney and is pursuing legal action, treating the store walkouts as violations of the 10-year franchise agreement. A source familiar with the matter said the operator "is keeping open the possibility of a connection to a competitor while assessing the situation."

"Competition among Korean companies in overseas markets can be fierce, but it is mostly healthy rivalry," one industry official said. "If this is a situation where they have come into conflict over store-opening strategies in a new market, it would be an extremely unusual development."

Some in the industry see the intense competition among convenience store chains as having moved beyond the domestic market onto an international stage, as operators increasingly enter the same overseas countries. CU also operates abroad — with 603 stores in Mongolia, 184 in Malaysia, 65 in Kazakhstan and 3 in Hawaii. E-mart24 runs 108 stores in Malaysia and one in India, and is preparing to open its first store in Laos.

Interior of E-mart24's first Cambodia store (BKK Store No. 1) [E-mart24]

soho0902@heraldcorp.com