Lotte Himart Headquarters (Photo courtesy of Lotte Himart)

 

[Alpha Biz= Paul Lee] South Korea’s Fair Trade Commission has launched an on-site investigation into fashion platform Musinsa and electronics retailer Lotte Himart over suspected unfair trade practices.

According to industry sources on the 28th, FTC investigators were dispatched to the companies’ headquarters the previous day to secure documents related to transactions with suppliers. The regulator is examining whether the companies violated the Fair Transactions in Large Retail Business Act.

Musinsa operates a fashion and lifestyle platform and supplies private-label products, posting consolidated revenue of about KRW 1.47 trillion last year. Lotte Himart runs 296 directly operated stores nationwide, along with an online shopping mall, with annual revenue of around KRW 2.3 trillion.

The probe comes as the FTC expands investigations into major retailers, following recent inspections of CJ Olive Young and Asung Daiso. The regulator plans to closely review the collected materials to determine whether any laws were violated.

 

 

 

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