"This Chuseok, even ancestral rites tables with convenience foods"... Retailers increase supply amid sell-out crisis

CJ CheilJedang Sells Out HMR Holiday Gift Sets
Dongwon The Banchan Increases Charyesang Supply by 50%
Emart Boosts In-Store Jeon and Ready-to-Eat Namul Supply by 20%

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Saeng-hye] Ahead of Chuseok, the retail industry’s holiday home meal replacements (HMR) are gaining great popularity. Due to the spread of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), visiting hometowns has become difficult, and preparing holiday meals by hand has become more challenging than in previous years, leading to a significant increase in consumers seeking HMR products.

Food Industry Sees HMR Sold Out and Popularity = On the 23rd, CJ CheilJedang announced that its refrigerated and frozen HMR gift sets, introduced for the first time this year, have sold out. In particular, analyzing data from CJ The Market, a food specialty mall, during the pre-order sales period for gift sets (August 17 to September 15, 30 days), it was found that consumers chose ‘home-cooked meals’ and ‘practicality.’

Through trend analysis, CJ CheilJedang judged that HMR products would be in high demand not only for ‘convenience’ but also as ‘practical holiday gifts’ with ‘taste quality,’ and composed gift sets with popular products. As a result, sets like ‘Bibigo Hansang Charim,’ which include products usable during the holidays such as japchae, sold out all prepared quantities, and additional stock was urgently supplied upon consumer request.

Following this trend, CJ CheilJedang also proposed a ‘Home Meal Replacement (HMR) Table Setting with Family’ together with chefs from the CJ MD One Recipe Marketing Team for this Chuseok. For a two-person table setting, rice and soup options included ‘Hetbahn Daily Multigrain Rice,’ ‘Bibigo Chadol Yukgaejang,’ and ‘Bibigo Beef Radish Soup.’ The main dishes were prepared using ‘Bibigo Tteokgalbi’ for galbijjim, along with ‘Bibigo Imyeonsu Gui,’ ‘Bibigo Crispy Bulgogi,’ and ‘Bibigo Thick Donggeurangttaeng.’ Additionally, three side dishes from ‘Bibigo Banchan’ were prepared: ‘Bibigo Kimchi,’ beef jangjorim, nut-stir-fried anchovies, and dried radish strips salad.

HMR Ancestral Table Quantities Also Increase = According to Dongwon Home Food, the online grocery market ‘The Banchan&’ has doubled the quantity of holiday meal products compared to last year due to overwhelming interest in Chuseok convenience foods. The quantity of ancestral table sets offered annually increased by 50%. The ancestral table sets sold by The Banchan include premium convenience food sets that faithfully replicate traditional ancestral tables with items such as dried jujubes, peeled chestnuts, dried persimmons, pears, glutinous rice sanja, white croaker grilled fish, beef skewers, signature assorted jeon, and holiday vegetable packages. Reservations are accepted from the 7th to the 23rd, with all orders delivered collectively on the early morning of the 30th. Small-scale products such as single-serving handmade assorted jeon are also offered for single-person households who cannot be with family during the holidays.

A Dongwon Home Food official stated, “Since social distancing was strengthened to level 2.5 at the end of August, daily orders for The Banchan& have increased by about 38% compared to before, and it is expected that order volumes will increase even more during this Chuseok holiday period.”

Easy Purchase of Jeon and Namul at Marts = Retailers have also started selling various holiday foods. Emart announced on the 23rd that from the 29th to the 2nd of next month, for four days, it will sell representative holiday jeon (Korean pancakes) freshly made in-store at 83 locations nationwide, as well as various namul (seasoned vegetable dishes) in packs. Nokdujeon (mung bean pancakes) are priced at 3,980 KRW each; Dongtaejeon (pollack pancakes), five-color skewers jeon, and zucchini jeon are 3,280 KRW per 100g; Donggeurangttaeng and japchae are 1,780 KRW per 100g. Assorted jeon is offered in a 945g pack for 19,980 KRW. Various namul such as spinach, bellflower root, bracken, and radish namul are available in 250g packs priced between 2,980 and 14,980 KRW.

Emart expects sales of jeon freshly made in-store to increase this year, aligning with the trend of conveniently creating a holiday atmosphere, and has prepared 20% more stock. Peacock will also hold an event from the 24th to the 4th of next month, giving customers who purchase over 25,000 KRW of Peacock ritual items a 5,000 KRW Shinsegae gift certificate. The event products include about 40 varieties ranging from songpyeon (rice cakes), sikhye (sweet rice drink), tteokgalbi, to various jeon. It is possible to prepare an ancestral table using only Peacock products. Representative items include Peacock Songpyeon 600g for 6,280 KRW, Peacock Assorted Jeon 470g for 8,880 KRW, Peacock Seafood Donggeurangttaeng 385g (2 pieces) for 6,980 KRW, and Peacock Soonhee’s Meat Patties Jeon 450g, a collaboration with the famous Soonhee’s Bindaetteok from Gwangjang Market, for 5,980 KRW.

Peacock ritual items have seen annual sales growth due to the convenience of simply heating the labor-intensive holiday foods in a microwave or frying pan. Especially this year, Emart expects Peacock ritual item sales to increase up to 1.8 billion KRW due to rising demand from those who cannot visit their hometowns and want to soothe their feelings with holiday food.

Luxury hotels are also making and selling holiday foods directly. Lotte Hotel World in Jamsil, Seoul, will sell a ‘Delight Box’ from the 27th to the 4th of next month to ease the burden of holiday foods and Chuseok ancestral tables. The three-tier box includes: the first tier with galbijjim (120g), japchae, rolled kimchi, abalone vinegar (120g), three-color jeon (five-flavor skewers, zucchini jeon, kimchi jeon), and five-grain rice; the second tier with steamed large shrimp (4 pieces), grilled yellow croaker (2 pieces), and four types of namul; and the third tier with walnut rolls, songpyeon, and other holiday snacks, offering 15 representative holiday dishes. The price is 225,000 KRW. Additionally, Lotte Hotel Seoul in Sogong-dong operates a ‘Family Gathering’ menu combining popular hotel restaurant dishes with Chuseok holiday menus, selectable according to the number of people. Prices range from 150,000 to 420,000 KRW.

JW Marriott Dongdaemun Square Seoul offers holiday food set packaging services. All dishes are cooked directly by chefs from the hotel’s restaurant ‘Tavolo 24.’ At Grand Intercontinental Seoul Parnas and Intercontinental Seoul COEX, Korean cuisine specialist chefs prepare nine types of ancestral dishes including tangguk (soup), yukjeon (pan-fried beef), eojuk (fish jeon), and domijeon (sea bream jeon), which hotel staff deliver directly. The price is 790,000 KRW.