Cheap thrills to beat crisis

The Straits Times
Nov 24, 2008 | 11:36 AM
Cheap thrills to beat crisis

SEOUL - SOUTH Korean women are using more lipstick to put a brave face on the economic gloom while men are turning increasingly to soju liquor and sex, traders and analysts say.

Retailers are struggling to shift electronics items, clothes and household goods as the economy weakens, but some items are traditionally recession-proof.

Convenience store chain GS25 said sales of condoms at its 3,300 outlets nationwide jumped 19.3 per cent year-on-year between early August and mid-November.

'Some experts say people seek pleasure to fight stress and shake off anxieties stemming from economic difficulties. I think this theory is backed by the increased sales of condoms,' GS25 spokesman Kim Il Yong told AFP.

Couples may also be putting off having children until better times, observers say.

Cosmetics companies said lipsticks - apparently the cheapest way for women to look good in lean times - are also selling well.

LG Household and Health Care reported a 15 per cent increase year-on-year in the sale of lipsticks in October. Amore Pacific said its lipstick sales surged 44 per cent in the first nine months to September.

'As the economic slump deepens, more women seek colourful items,' LG Household and Health Care said in a statement. 'Out of the line-up of basic items, lipsticks are relatively easy to get access to.'

A spokesman for Amore Pacific said the increased lipstick sales might also reflect a change in make-up trends.

Soju, a cheap vodka-like liquor widely consumed in South Korea, might be a more potent economic indicator.

'Koreans tend to give up whisky and beer and satisfy themselves with this economical booze in tough times,' said Mr Yoo Jin, an analyst with Good Morning Shinhan Securities.

Supermarket chain Lotte Mart said its October soju sales rose 13.9 per cent from October 2007.

Together with soju makers, shares in cigarette and instant noodle manufacturers are also relatively safe bets in hard times, Mr Yoo said.

'Cigarette sales are hardly affected by an economic slump as smokers tend to puff heavily, which they believe is a way to cope with stress,' Mr Yoo said.

When South Korea's economy was shaken by a credit card crisis in 2003, the total sales of 35 listed food and beverage companies increased 9.1 per cent from the previous year, Mr Yoo said.

In 2003 cigarette sales grew 8.9 per cent, instant noodles were up 6.4 per cent and soju up 3.1 per cent, he said.

Despite government hopes of stimulating sluggish domestic consumption to compensate for declining exports, many Koreans are becoming more frugal.

More office staff are taking packed lunches to work or using the firm's cafeteria rather than patronising restaurants.

According to a survey by online portal Career of 1,671 respondents, the number of people who take a packed lunch to work rose recently to 205 from 77.

The homeless are hurting the most. Operators of free kitchens said they were running out of funds to feed them as donations were dwindling.

Volunteer Chung Byeong Chang was quoted by the Korea Times as saying that more than a third of volunteers might have to halt their service this winter if the downturn worsens.

Even pets - and vets - are feeling the pinch.

Owners who can't afford the bill are failing to collect pets from vets after treatment while others are turning their dogs and cats out onto the street.

'Even humans are finding it hard to foot medical bills these days, so it's not surprising to see people surrender their sick pets,' Seoul vet Lee Joo Ho told local media recently. -- AFP