Thank you! Come again! Ah... Convenience.

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We all have generic names for convenience stores – Mini-marts, Kwiki-Marts, Piss-n-Smunch – and quite often we never pay much attention to the actual names. How many convenience store chains in Korea can you name off the top of your head? CU (formerly Family Mart), 7-Eleven, Mini Stop, Buy the Way, GS-25… You can't swing a dead cat in Korea without knocking some Ramen off the shelves of one of these little shops. In fact, the only other industry that occupies as much random street space in Korea would be the many, many, many coffee shops. Quick, how many coffee shop chains can you name in South Korea? Angel in Us, A Twosome Place, Tom N Toms, Holly's Coffee, the ever-present Starbucks… at last count, and depending on whom you ask, there are today around 13,000 coffee shops in South Korea – compared to the 15,000 convenience stores. And both numbers are growing.

Are you taking a bus ride through Seoul today? Try this little game: Sit on opposite sides of the bus from a friend. Each of you gets a point for every coffee shop or convenience store you pass. If you pass a gym on your side, you lose all your coffee shops and/or convenience stores and must start again from 0. Who has the most when you get off the bus?

That game actually sounds kind of lame, doesn't it? Well, fear not – there is a better one. It is called Go-Stop, and you can get a deck of the little plastic cards for this game in any convenience store in Korea. The cards are called Hwatu (화투), and the game is a hoot, once you learn how to play. You can sometimes see older men (ajeossis) playing this game at the little plastic tables set up outside most of these same convenience stores. Often, they are surrounded by empty soju bottles. Do you want a night out that will save you a little money and provide you with an atmosphere conducive to conversation? Then the plastic tables at a convenience store are for you. Sit back, crack a beer (or a makkoli if you really want to save some money), and do some people watching. It is a marvelous way to kill an afternoon. Pick your location wisely, and there's no telling who you may meet. If you get hungry, just grab some snacks off the shelf when you go in to pick up your next drink. Shrimp chips, bag o' squid, assorted fruits and nuts, samgak (triangle) kimbap, ice cream, and those marvelous little sandwiches of questionable content… the banquet is considerable and varies from shop to shop. Forgot to brush your teeth before heading out to slum it at the local GS-25? No problem. They sell travel toothbrush kits for around 2,500 won. Rip your shirt twisting the cap off that last imported beer? Pocket sewing kit, 1,000 won. In fact, you can often find everything you need to survive contained in one street of these remarkable convenience stores.

[caption id="attachment_1477" align="aligncenter" width="228" class=" "] Samgak kimbap and other assorted munchies.[/caption]

Convenience stores in Korea bring in on average 6.2 trillion won (USD$5.8 million) per year for their segment of the total retail market. The biggest of the franchises is Family Mart, which was rebranded in 2012 as CU in order to expand the franchise's business globally under an independent brand. Family Mart was a subsidiary of BGF Retail, a joint venture between Korea's Bo Gwang Group and the Japanese brand, Family Mart. This move was intended to establish CU as an independent retailer rather than just a knock-off of Japanese models, according to BGF Retail Chairman Hong Seok-Jo. The label CU is an abbreviation of the slogan "Convenience for You" but many locations have retained the words "with Family Mart" on displays to maintain customer loyalty.

[caption id="attachment_1479" align="aligncenter" width="271" class=" "] Other assorted convenience store goodies.[/caption]

CU still faces stiff competition from many other established convenience competitors, including GS-25, another leading contender in the convenience store wars in South Korea. GS-25 is run by its parent company, GS Retail, although it was originally under the control of LG. Both GS and LG originate with the older company name, "Lucky Goldstar." 7-Eleven also has a heavy presence in Korea with over 7,000 locations licensed under the Lotte Group. Lotte then acquired the Buy the Way chain of convenience stores and brought them under the 7-Eleven umbrella, although some still retain the Buy the Way name on their signs. Although the shop name is the same as the U.S. stores, products closely associated with U.S. 7-Elevens – namely the Slurpee and the Big Gulp – are not available in the Korean stores.



Whether you choose to plant yourself in the open air outside a CU, a 7-Eleven, a GS-25 or a Mini Stop, each of these convenience stores has a lot to offer, and at very affordable prices. Although many of them carry many of the same items and brands, each one is unique in its own peculiar way, and none of them carry exactly the same items. Some of the most fun you can have in Korea is sitting around a little plastic table outside a convenience store on a busy street. Some may pooh-pooh the idea as "low class" – and it is, to some degree – but in Korean culture, it is considered much, much lower-class to stroll down the street with an open alcoholic beverage in your hand. So take note, wagooks – if you want to drink outside in Korea, you can do far worse than getting comfy outside your local Kwiki-Mart.  No matter what, when it comes to selecting a business, the three key points are always the same: Location, location, location. Some of the best ones are the CU in Haebangchon, a GS-25 located around the corner from subway exit 4 in Apgujeong, and one, the name of which I forget, that is up on the back street in Itaewon, near the Rose and Crown pub (exit 1, fourth alley on the right). There is also a really small one conveniently located across from the park near Hongik University in Hongdae, which is also a marvelous place to socialize outdoors when the weather is nice. If you are tired of the bar scene but would still like a sociable atmosphere and yes, maybe even a light booze buzz, go commandeer a table at a convenience store – but be warned: It is addictive. It is much more comfortable – and convenient – than it looks.

But don’t take my word for it – just ask these folks.