AKIPRESS.COM - GS Retail is opening its first stores in Mongolia, with 50 locations planned in the country before the end of 2021, Korea JoongAng Daily reported.

The Korean company signed a contract Tuesday with Mongolia's Shunkhlai Group to start opening GS25 convenience stores in the first half of 2021. This is the second overseas expansion for GS Retail after establishing shops in Vietnam in 2018.

A signing ceremony took place online, with the headquarters of the two companies linked by a video connection.

The plan is to open the first GS25 in Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia. GS Retail will receive royalties under a master franchise agreement.

The GS25 parcel delivery service, where packages can be sent from one store to another for pickup, will be offered in the country.

A memorandum of understanding (MOU) for the deal was signed in January, but due the coronavirus pandemic, the convenience store chain needed cooperation from the Mongolian government for its employees to enter the country on a special flight in August to keep deal advancing.

Shunkhlai is a holding company with 12 subsidiaries in a wide range of businesses, including consumer goods, health care and mining. According to GS Retail, Shunkhlai’s infrastructure for beverage production is expected to be beneficial for the partnership.

"GS25 is a homebred, local brand that is now exported worldwide while receiving royalty fees,” said Kim Seong-gi, vice president of the CVS support division at GS Retail. "GS25 will create a local business model with its partner Shunkhlai, which has established an unrivaled business infrastructure in Mongolia."