The Shilla Duty Free (Shilla) has struck an alliance with South Korea’s leading search portal Naver to accelerate the travel retailer’s digitalisation.

The strategic agreement, agreed on 8 September at Naver’s 1784 building in Bundang-gu in the Seongnam district of Seoul, enables Shilla’s duty free and hotel businesses to tap into Naver’s generative AI and cloud technology.

Using data optimisation, customers will benefit from enhanced online and offline benefits through Naver Plus membership and convenient services for hotel and duty free users.

Effective from 18 September, Naver Plus members will secure an 8% return of the purchase amount as Naver Pay points on Shilla online duty free purchases.

Additionally, Shilla Duty Free will integrate Naver Pay across its hotel and duty free touchpoints, both online and offline.

The collaboration also opens the door for Shilla to debut its premium products on Naver Shopping, described by Shilla as a ‘vanguard’ of Korea’s e-commerce domain.

Naver unveiled ‘Hyper CLOVA X,’  alongside the conversational AI service ‘CLOVA X’ and the AI search tool ‘CUE:’ at the Dan 23 conference in Seoul.

Tae-Ho Kim, Head of Shilla’s travel retail division, said: “Our collaboration with Naver, especially utilising its AI prowess, will broaden our business horizons. We will continue our relentless pursuit of digital transformation, anchored in customer convenience and benefits.”

Echoing this sentiment, Han Jae-young, Head of Naver’s Business Development Centre, added: “This strategic alignment with Hotel Shilla amplifies the membership experience by fusing distinctive benefits across diverse verticals like membership, travel, payment, and shopping. Beyond user experience, this partnership leverages Naver’s distinctive technology to elevate the digital competitiveness of our partners, fostering an unparalleled business synergy for both entities.”

For more on The Shilla Duty Free, watch out for the TRBusiness Top 10 International Operators report.