District-Record 39.5 Billion Won in Gangnam-Love Gift Certificates for Chuseok — 5% Discount Plus 5% Cashback

Contest-Based Project Backs Specialized Programs for Four Alley-Style Shopping Districts, Totaling 130 Million Won

Poster
Poster

Gangnam-gu is moving to revitalize its alley markets ahead of Chuseok, combining a large-scale issuance of Gangnam-Love gift certificates with support for specialized programs at alley-style shopping districts.

The initiative aims to boost local spending while backing tailored programs that reflect each district's character, drawing in more visitors and lifting sales for small business owners.

A district record: 39.5 billion won ($29.5 million) in Chuseok Gangnam-Love gift certificates

The district will issue 39.5 billion won worth of Gangnam-Love gift certificates at 2 p.m. Wednesday, a record for its Chuseok issuances.

This follows 60 billion won issued during this year's Lunar New Year holiday, bringing Gangnam-gu's total gift certificate supply for the year to 99.5 billion won.

Buyers receive a 5 percent discount at purchase and a further 5 percent cashback on their payment amount, for a combined benefit of up to 10 percent. The measure is designed to ease household holiday spending burdens and channel consumption toward local small businesses and alley markets.

The certificates can be purchased through the Seoul Pay+ app. Each person may buy up to 500,000 won worth per month, with a holding limit of 1.5 million won. Buyers can receive a 30 percent income tax deduction on their purchase amount, and participating small business owners can accept the certificates with no additional payment fees.

The Seoul Pay+ app also offers Gangnam Ddaenggyeoyo gift certificates, which can be used on the public online food delivery platform Ddaenggyeoyo. These certificates, usable for food delivery orders, are sold at up to 15 percent below face value, with a monthly purchase limit of 200,000 won per person.

Four alley-style shopping districts to receive tailored support programs

The district is also pursuing customized support to strengthen the alley markets' own competitiveness. In August, it ran a contest for the 2026 First Alley-style Shopping District Specialization Project among alley-style shopping districts in Gangnam-gu, and selected four winners after review.

The four selected areas are the alley-style shopping districts in Sinsa Serosugil, Cheongdam-dong, Yeoksam-dong and Eungok Village in Segok-dong. Sinsa Serosugil will run the "Serosugil Benefits Festa," and Cheongdam-dong will pursue a project to boost foreign visitor traffic on Cheongdam Food Street. Yeoksam-dong will hold "Get Benefits! Make Friends!" and Eungok Village will host the "Food & Run Festival." The district will provide a combined 130 million won to support the four shopping districts' projects.

The contest let merchant associations directly propose projects reflecting each district's characteristics and on-the-ground needs. The selected districts will roll out programs tailored to their own identities in stages, including visitor-attraction events, alley festivals and cultural events. They will also offer cashback on Onnuri gift certificates, a nationwide traditional-market voucher program.

The district plans to link the consumption boost from gift certificate issuance with the alley-style shopping district programs. This will reinforce a virtuous cycle in which local spending drives higher sales for small business owners.

Gangnam-gu District Mayor Kim Hyun-ki said, "Through the large-scale issuance of gift certificates and cashback for Chuseok, we will ease residents' holiday spending burdens and boost local consumption, while also energizing alley markets with tailored support that reflects each district's character." He added, "We will continue to build a foundation for small business owners and alley markets to grow together through diverse support policies that reflect voices from the field."


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