Shelves sit nearly empty at a Homeplus location in Seoul on July 12, 2026. (Yonhap)
Homeplus temporarily suspended operations at locations across Korea starting Monday. The retailer said that it had decided to temporarily shutter its retail locations due to a lack of funds and an inability to maintain its facilities. The company said some stores housed in the same buildings as Homeplus supermarkets will continue operations at the request of their respective operators.“Most of our operating funds have been completely exhausted, leaving us unable to make payments to suppliers or cover operating expenses needed to keep our stores open,” the retailer said, adding that every effort would be made to prevent any accidents or safety hazards. Homeplus dismissed speculation that it would file for bankruptcy on Thursday, saying that it would reach a decision on whether to restart operations after monitoring developments through July 20 — the deadline for it to file an appeal of the court’s decision to terminate rehabilitation proceedings — and awaiting the court’s final decision. By Yi Ju-been, staff reporterPlease direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]
