South Korea: CU launches first commercial drone delivery service

BGF Retail, operator of the convenience brand, has partnered with Yeongwol County to offer drone delivery for online orders starting this Friday.

BGF Retail, operator of the convenience store chain CU, has begun to commercialise drone delivery services for online orders. The company is collaborating with Yeongwol County and offers this option since this Friday as the first Korean retailer to provide such service.

According to a report by local news site The Korea Times, the first store to implement this solution is the Yeongwol Jugong branch. Drones that carry orders will fly to the Oasis Glamping spot, which is located nearly 3.6 kilometres away. Products that can be delivered via aircraft include cup noodles, desserts, lunch sets and beverages, all small items that weigh less than 5 kilograms.

"We have successfully commercialised drone delivery for the first time in Korea, providing a consumer-centred shopping service. We will continue to improve our drone quality and reduce delivery times in the near future," said a BGF Retail official as cited by the site.

The firm says that drones will be able to deliver orders in just 10 minutes thanks to not being affected by traffic on the streets. The service is currently available only on Fridays and Saturdays, completely free of charge. The company’s drones weigh a total of 17 kilograms and its batteries let them run for 20 minutes when fully charged at a top speed of 36 km/h.