3040 Young Housewives Respond Enthusiastically... Hotel Industry Competes in Premium Ready Meals

Online Food Sales Up 56.5% in First Half
Competition to Capture Premium HMR Demand
Hotel Industry Turns to Convenience Meals Amid F&B Impact

Mayfield Hotel Seoul's 'Nakwon Braised Beef Short Ribs'

[Asia Economy Reporter Cha Min-young] In the first half of this year, the online food market grew by more than 50%, and within the market, there has been a strong trend toward premiumization and differentiation. Premium home meal replacements (HMR) that allow consumers to easily enjoy hotel cuisine are a representative example.

According to the related industry on the 20th, the 'Nakwon Beef Short Rib Stew' product, recently launched in limited quantities by Mayfield Hotel Seoul at Hyundai Department Store's online food section To Home, sold out in just 11 days. Using the recipe unique to 'Nakwon,' a restaurant of Mayfield Seoul, known as one of Seoul's top three galbi (short rib) establishments, the product saw high order rates among housewives in their 30s and 40s. It is 700g per serving and priced at 31,000 KRW.

Shinsegae Chosun Hotel's meal kits 'Chosun Hotel Uni Jjajang' and 'Chosun Hotel Samseon Jjamppong' recorded sales of 100,000 units within about 100 days of launch, expanding their sales channels from SSG.com’s dawn delivery to nationwide offline stores at E-Mart. These meal kits recreate the signature dishes of 'Hogyeongjeon,' the Chinese restaurant of Shinsegae Chosun Hotel, developed by a chef with 27 years of cooking experience at Chosun Hotel. Sales exceeded those of existing meal kit products by more than tenfold. Additionally, 'Iberico Pork Neck Kimchi Fried Rice' and 'Spicy Thai Seafood Fried Rice' are scheduled to be released as HMR products.

Shinsegae Chosun Hotel's 'Chosun Hotel Unijjajang', 'Chosun Hotel Samseon Jjamppong'

Shinsegae Chosun Hotel is also actively promoting kimchi sales. They collaborated with E-Mart's 'Peacock' brand to create the 'Peacock Chosun Hotel Packaged Kimchi' product. As kimchi, once a basic side dish, has become one of the preferred foods, consumers now choose kimchi varieties. Peacock kimchi, which was previously sold only online, recently expanded its sales channels to convenience store E-Mart24, accepting pre-orders. The three types offered were whole cabbage kimchi, young summer radish kimchi, and young radish kimchi.

Glad Hotel & Resort also sold three types of 'Glad Chef's Edition' products on home shopping. After first launching in July and receiving positive responses, they resumed sales on CJ O Shopping on the 3rd and 11th of this month. The three products introduced were 'Meat Double Steak Truffle Wagyu,' 'Cheese Double Steak Truffle Cheese Wagyu,' and 'Glad Truffle Demi Sauce.'

The growth trend of the online food market continues. According to the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation (aT) Food Industry Statistical Information, the size of the online food market in the first half of this year reached 19 trillion KRW, a 56.5% increase compared to the first half of last year. With the rise in COVID-19 cases in the second half of the year leading to higher social distancing levels, the market size is expected to have grown even further. Hotels, which have suffered significant losses in food and beverage (F&B) sales, are also observed to be accelerating their shift toward the HMR market.