[Edaily Reporter Lee So-Hyun ] Kakao(035720)has launched a new “Special Deals” section on the KakaoTalk Shopping tab, featuring one product sold daily at a steep discount. This strategy aims to expand KakaoTalk’s role beyond a space for exchanging gifts to become an everyday shopping platform. In fact, the transaction volume for “self-purchases”—where users buy products for their own use directly within KakaoTalk—has increased by more than 30% over the past year, emerging as a new growth driver.

According to the IT industry on the 10th, Kakao has been operating the “Today’s Special: Kakao Gives You a Discount” section in the KakaoTalk Shopping tab since the 4th. The section selects one new product each day and sells it at a special discounted price in limited quantities exclusively through the Shopping tab.

While the existing “Talk Deal” offers discounts on a variety of products, “Today’s Special: Kakao Gives You a Discount” is characterized by focusing the discount on a single product per day. The idea is to encourage repeat visits to the Shopping tab and purchases by featuring a new special-price item every day. Currently, the section focuses on “Talk Deal” products, but there are plans to expand the product range to include “Gift” items in the future.

Initial reactions have been positive. From the 5th to the 10th—a six-day period excluding one weekend day—all the special-price items prepared for the five business days sold out. This is significant as it confirms strong initial demand.

This special deals section is an extension of Kakao’s ongoing strategy to strengthen its commerce business. In late 2024, Kakao renamed the “KakaoTalk Shopping” service to “TalkDeal,” reinforcing its discount-focused shopping brand. It also introduced self-purchase services to the “Gift” feature, such as “Gift to Me” and “I Bought It Myself,” where users can buy products for their own use.

It has also been experimenting with new shopping methods. Last year, it piloted “Today’s Group Buy,” a group-buying service based on Open Chat, and in April of this year, it ended the beta phase to revamp the service. Recently, it launched the TalkDeal advertising campaign “A Deal Has Arrived—Via Talk,” featuring actors Choi Dae-hoon and Kang Mal-geum, to expand its consumer reach by highlighting discount benefits.

The shift in consumer trends is driving Kakao’s focus on self-purchases beyond gifting. According to the third-quarter earnings report released on the 5th, transaction volume for TalkBiz Commerce—including gifting and TalkDeal—reached 2.3 trillion won, a 13% increase year-over-year. Commerce revenue also rose 16% to 241.3 billion won.

In particular, the number of self-purchase customers and transaction volume increased by 23% and 33%, respectively, compared to the same period last year. The share of self-purchases in total commerce transaction volume also expanded to approximately 30%. Driven by the peak season effect—as the Chuseok holiday, which fell in the fourth quarter of last year, shifted to the third quarter this year—combined with the rise in self-purchases, the “Gift” service recorded its highest-ever monthly transaction volume in September.

Transaction volume on Talk Store also rose by 8% year-over-year, driven by expanded purchase touchpoints through collaborations with major brands, live commerce, and influencer deals. Kakao Commerce, which was previously focused on gifting, is expanding its reach to become an everyday shopping platform by also capturing self-purchase demand.

A Kakao spokesperson stated, “We’ve launched a new special deals section so that users can enjoy unique shopping benefits not only on TalkDeal and the ‘Send a Gift’ feature but also on the Shopping tab,” adding, “We hope you’ll experience the joy of smart shopping as we showcase new products at unbeatable prices every day.”