Listening to the consumer: Korea Exchanges adjust to customers' needs

  • Published
  • By Sgt. 1st Class Jon Cupp
  • AAFES Pacific Region Public Affairs
YONGSAN GARRISON, Republic of Korea --  Army and Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES) facilities throughout South Korea are adjusting to meet customers' needs through increasing stock assortments, renovating stores and expanding the types of merchandise they carry.

AAFES associates on Camps Humphreys, Walker and Casey, and other camps, are expanding their merchandise assortments to include more infant and toddler clothing, toys, pet items, juvenile furniture and automotive items. Along with this, the Yongsan PX and Osan Air Base BX are expanding clothing merchandise lines that reflect the latest fashion trends to include Anne Klein footwear among other name brands.

"We want our customers to understand that we know they are special, that we are taking care of their needs and that we understand cookie cutter is not always the answer," said Korea Area Manager Elizabeth Sandoe, when explaining that each store's customers in Korea have their own unique needs.

One of the things driving change in the way AAFES stores in Korea take care of their customers has been an increase in the number of families moving to Korea, according to Stan Young, Yongsan general manager.

"Yongsan has been pretty normalized because it's the capital and where the headquarters is, but when you talk about [other areas in] Korea, we're talking about stores that before three or four years ago were set up primarily for single military service members," said Young. "They were relatively small troop stores with young men's clothing and heavy on electronics."

As more families have moved to Korea, many of the camps that once catered solely to single service members have begun carrying more household items, children's clothing, linens and other family-related merchandise.

Within the past year, AAFES has spent more than $2 million making improvements to its facilities in Korea with another $18.9 million planned for future projects.

Some major renovations for the year included upgrades to the Yongsan main store and the Camp Casey main store, food court, and concession mall. Along with this, there have been several other projects to include renovating the Burger King at Camp Walker, and consolidating services at Camp Red Cloud PX into one location.

"Even though we know that some of the installations where we serve our customers are not enduring installations, AAFES is committed to staying there and taking care of our customers as long as we have customers there," said Sandoe. "Therefore we are accomplishing projects to update those facilities so we can maintain a high standard and offer good customer service."

But many of the improvements could not take place without input from the customer, according to Sandoe. Some of the ways in which AAFES receives feedback from its customers in Korea include Soldier and Airman forums, and family readiness group meetings and town halls, in which AAFES senior leaders and managers visit with service members and their families and hear them voice their concerns or make suggestions with regards to issues related to AAFES.

Although the nearly 1,800 AAFES associates in Korea have kept busy tackling the challenges that come with improvements to their merchandise assortment or store renovations, managers said their associates' main focus has always been taking care of and building relationships with their customers.

"We wouldn't have been doing our jobs for so many years if we didn't love our customers," said Young. "This is a tough job, moving your family all over the world, and I wouldn't have been doing this if I didn't feel some loyalty to the customers I serve. I try to take care of them in every way, shape or form that I can."

"Our U.S. and Korean managers are very dedicated to our customers and the needs of our families," added Sandoe. "Here in Korea, we want customers to feel that they're at home. We want to take such good care of them that when they go back to the U.S., they will make the choice to pass by other stores and go to AAFES."

Korea-based military service members and their families can log on to the USFK Facebook page July 29 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. for an opportunity to voice their opinions about AAFES, address concerns or make suggestions during a live chat with AAFES representatives.

For more information about AAFES, log on to the official website at www.aafes.com, visit the Official AAFES Facebook BX/PX page or for news about AAFES Pacific Region, go to the Pacific website at http://odin.aafes.com/pacrim/corner/index.html.