Imsil En Cheese Cluster, Online Sales Marketing "Winning Streak"

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Nosik] The online sales marketing promoted by the Imshil N Cheese Cluster (Chairman Shim Min), which leads the cheese industry in Imsil-gun, is overcoming the COVID-19 crisis and thriving.

The Imsil N Cheese Cluster Project Group was launched in 2013 as part of the Jeollabuk-do Eastern Region Special Account, and operates by building a network linking farms, dairy processing companies, research institutions, and administration.

Anticipating significant difficulties in offline sales channels due to the impact of COVID-19, the project group established an online mall on Naver Smart Store in March and began online marketing through Naver brand search and Powerlink.

As a result, by the end of September, the total number of orders reached 5,774, with sales amounting to 176 million KRW, marking successful sales performance.

In particular, through SNS platforms such as Instagram and Facebook, it became known nationwide, enjoying a Chuseok holiday sales boom by selling 3,302 orders worth 130 million KRW in September alone.

Even after the holiday, supported by online promotion, sales have steadily increased, reaching about 1,500 orders as of October.

The project group has contributed significantly to winning the Korea Representative Brand Award in the processed food category for seven consecutive years from 2014 to this year by promoting various publicity, marketing, and sales activities to strengthen the joint brand of Imsil N Cheese, Korea's representative cheese brand.

To foster the cheese industry, they are actively promoting cheese industry capacity-building projects such as farm education and consulting, as well as projects to revitalize dairy processing companies.

Additionally, to secure consumer trust and enhance product safety for Imsil N Cheese dairy products, they are leading the development of various cheese products through a cooperative system with the Imsil Cheese and Food Research Institute.

To activate sales of Imsil N Cheese dairy products, offline distribution channels are also being strengthened. They operate five directly managed sales outlets, including Osu Rest Area up and down line sales stores, Gwangju Rest Area in Gyeonggi-do up and down line sales stores, and Imsil Market Cheese Cafe, generating annual sales of 3.5 billion KRW.

This year, due to the unexpected impact of COVID-19, many farms faced difficulties in selling dairy products, so sales events were held by directly visiting local governments and public institutions nationwide.

County Governor Shim Min said, “Imsil N Cheese Cluster is playing a key role in cheese sales by overcoming the difficult conditions of COVID-19 through online sales started this year,” and added, “We will strive to strengthen the functions and roles of the project group so that the Imsil cheese industry can grow and develop further and support cheese farms in the region.”