Post-holiday blues can often dampen your mood. After spending a week in Korea and enjoying all the food and vibes, it’s hard to not miss the honey butter chips, the corndogs and the cool dragon-beard candy from Myeongdong Street Market.
What happens when the longing kicks in? You run to the nearest Korean convenience store to re-live the moment. However, that might not be possible anymore.
Emart24 in Singapore
In Dec 2022, Emart24 opened its doors in Singapore, located in two mega malls – Jurong Point and Nex. Shortly after, a third outlet in Queenstown, Margaret Drive, opened in Jul 2023.
To nobody’s surprise, the Koreaboos, the K-Pop fans and K-culture enthusiasts flocked to the outlets. Their debut was seen as a success, and we were considered late to the party since our neighbour Malaysia already had 52 outlets.
Emart24 is a household name in Korea, where it originated from, with more than 6,500 outlets offering snacks and ready-to-eat meals. Its stores are also semi-unmanned.
An Abrupt Closure
On 18 Mar, Singapore Atrium Sale posted on their Facebook that the Emart24 outlet located in Nex had closed down.
To everyone’s dismay, the comments section of the post reported that other outlets: Jurong Point and Margaret Market, had closed too.
This was unexpected as some visitors of the mall shared that they had walked past Emart24 a few days prior to the closure and did not see anything that may allude to its doors closing.
Others have shared that the closure was quick, and they hadn’t had the chance to try the snacks there.
However, according to a statement to local media outlet Mothership, they said that these decisions are to “reshuffle our outlets”, and that they’re “here to stay”.
They also claimed that they “remain fully committed to make Singapore our home.”
It’s easy to not feel gwaenchana with the news of the closure, and that’s valid. But fret not – there are other alternatives to get Korean snacks.
While ready-to-eat bibimbaps and corndogs are hard to obtain, some brands of ramyeon, chips, drinks, and even meat, are available in other Korean Marts.
For example, a known franchise: Koryo Mart is a good hub for snacks. With multiple outlets sprinkled across the island, you can still get your banana milk and pouch drinks.
At Orchard, Chorok Market offers fresh Korean produce, seafood and meat.
Of course, you can also always order online, or drive to Malaysia to get your hands on your Korean food cravings.