Discover the New ‘레피세리’: Seoul’s Premium Grocery Store Revolutionizing Fresh Food Shopping in 2023

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[Herald Economy=Reporter Kim Jin] “It’s so much better than before,” said a woman in her 70s, sampling nuts at Le Picerie, the new premium grocer that opened on the basement level of Lotte Department Store’s Nowon branch in Seoul on the morning of the 31st. “I used to shop here, but now I think I’ll come more often.”

At the store’s “peanut paste zone,” shoppers queued for freshly churned nut butters. Over at the tofu and tteok (rice cake) counter, one customer even asked, “What time do they make the fresh tteok?”

Le Picerie Nowon, which opened on the 31st, transformed the mall’s food hall into a 550-pyeong (about 19,571 sq ft) premium grocery—making it the largest outlet of its kind in northeast Seoul. It’s the sixth Le Picerie and the second renovated location after the Incheon store that launched in 2023. With a local population of roughly 500,000 and stronger grocery demand than other branches, Lotte positioned the space as a “fresh gourmet specialty hall.”

The store beefed up differentiated offerings across fresh produce and meat. The fresh foods section now includes a display dedicated to fruit from top producers as well as regional suppliers. For the first time in Korea’s retail sector, the meat counter features a premium pork corner selling distinct varieties—purebred Duroc, Jeju Berkshire, and Woori Heukdon (Korean black pork). Hanwoo (Korean beef) is separated into categories for 1++ grade female cattle labeled Elfrumié, Le Picerie, and Local.

The grocery area debuted a “Better Food Zone” that groups high-nutrition items (UP), low-calorie/low-sugar/decaf choices (DOWN), and organic or trend-forward products in one place.

“We didn’t just place products passively on shelves,” a Lotte Department Store official said. “We added curation based on sales data to reflect customer preferences.”

Another standout is the focus on interactive, hands-on experiences. The seafood counter plans a “live sushi bar” in partnership with Sajo Tuna, Korea’s largest tuna distributor, where staff will turn customers’ selected fish into meal kits or grill it to order. At the nuts counter, shoppers can sample pistachios and almonds and have them freshly turned into butter on the spot.

At the tofu and tteok counter, customers can buy products made in an on-site production area. The store also houses a Korean side-dish archive offering about 170 kinds of banchan, plus a brand corner for Orga Wholefood, which distributes eco-friendly foods.

Lotte Department Store plans to apply the Le Picerie model to future food-hall renovations, evolving curation and product mixes using data accumulated from existing locations.

“We aimed to create a one-on-one, personalized fresh-gourmet platform that goes beyond spatial limits,” said Yang Sung-jin, head of Lotte Department Store’s fresh foods division. “We will continue to refine it into an advanced supermarket with curated selections and the lively feel of in-store experiences.”