Annual Sales of 1 Trillion KRW from a Single Food Item... Establishing 'K-Mandu' Globally
New Global Mandu Technology Center Established... Internalizing Capabilities for Standardizing Taste and Quality
Fostering Large-Scale Innovative Products Following 'Bibigo Wang Gyoja'... Accelerating Business Expansion
[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Seon-ae] Beyond the ‘People’s Dumpling,’ Now the ‘Flagship of K-Food’
CJ CheilJedang’s ‘Bibigo Dumplings’ has broken the 1 trillion KRW annual sales barrier, rewriting the history of the food industry. Bibigo Dumplings is the first single food item in the industry to surpass 1 trillion KRW in sales. Although its overseas expansion started later than Shin Ramyun (Nongshim) and Choco Pie (Orion), achieving the 1 trillion KRW milestone ahead of them is highly significant.
Focusing on the Strategic Market of the U.S.... Expanding Sales through Infrastructure Investment
On the 22nd, CJ CheilJedang announced that Bibigo Dumplings’ sales exceeded 1 trillion KRW this year, emphasizing that this achievement was made simultaneously both domestically and internationally with a single food item, unlike major manufacturing industries such as automobiles and semiconductors.
Bibigo Dumplings was planned from the start with both domestic and overseas markets in mind. Domestically, it revolutionized the negative perception of frozen foods with product quality that changed the existing paradigm of frozen dumplings. As a result, it grew dumplings into the most significant category in the frozen food market, boasting five major products with annual sales exceeding 10 billion KRW, including ‘Bibigo Wang Gyoza,’ which generates over 1 billion KRW in monthly sales.
Overseas, market entry strategies were devised based on each country’s food culture and consumer trends. Special efforts were made to be recognized as ‘Korean-style dumplings’ by overseas consumers.
In the strategic market of the United States, Bibigo entered Costco from the early stages, targeting the mainstream market. While focusing on the bite-sized ‘Bibigo Mini Wontons’ familiar to locals, the product was continuously exposed with the label ‘Mandu (dumplings)’ to increase familiarity. In 2015, a separate dumpling research and development (R&D) team was established to quickly reflect local consumer trends in products, and from 2018, Korean-style dumplings were officially introduced to the market.
In markets like China and Japan, where brands already hold monopolistic positions, Bibigo Dumplings focused intensively on the younger generation, the ‘future consumers.’ As a result, last year, Bibigo Dumplings ranked first in the dumpling category on JD.com in China and first in the food category on Qoo10, operated by eBay Japan.
In Europe, where experience with Korean cuisine is relatively limited, distribution channels were expanded mainly in the UK, France, and Germany, where Asian food culture is more widely accepted, achieving notable results. Currently, Bibigo Dumplings are available in over 800 large retail outlets across Europe and all 34 Costco stores, achieving an average annual growth rate of 61% over three years in three countries from 2018 to this year.
Active infrastructure investment has driven sales growth worldwide. The number of production bases has expanded from five in Korea, the U.S., and China in 2013 to 15, including Vietnam, Japan, and Europe (Germany). Production lines have also increased about fourfold compared to 2013 to meet supply demands.
Establishment of Global Dumpling Technology Center... Transferring Technology to Overseas Production Bases
CJ CheilJedang plans to continue the Bibigo Dumplings success story worldwide by leveraging accumulated production and sales know-how and differentiated technological capabilities by country.
To this end, they plan to continuously develop innovative large-sized products like ‘Bibigo Wang Gyoza’ that can succeed overseas. In the domestic market, which serves as the standard for global Bibigo Dumplings dissemination, they will focus on ‘handmade-style frozen dumplings’ that carefully reflect individual tastes as well as universal flavors to elevate the level of frozen dumplings.
They also plan to accelerate global business expansion. In the U.S., where the highest sales occur, Bibigo Dumplings will be supplied through Schwan’s extensive distribution network across the country. Additionally, through collaboration with Schwan’s, they will intensify new product development aimed at capturing local tastes while maintaining the identity of Korean cuisine.
In Japan, leveraging the sales network of Gyoza Keikaku, a frozen dumpling company acquired last May, consumer touchpoints will expand significantly from Costco to supermarket chains. They are also preparing for the global expansion of ‘gluten-free dumplings,’ a strength of Gyoza Keikaku. Furthermore, in Europe, they plan to expand into new markets such as Scandinavia and the Benelux countries with high income levels and actively increase B2B transactions to broaden the base for Korean dumplings.
Meanwhile, CJ CheilJedang is actively promoting the creation of Bibigo’s unique dumpling equipment and standard packaging based on the ‘only one’ technology accumulated through the newly established ‘Global Dumpling Technology Center’ under the Food Production Headquarters. This technology will be transferred to overseas production bases, standardizing the taste and quality of Bibigo Dumplings sold worldwide and internalizing capabilities.
A CJ CheilJedang official said, “The vision we dreamed of with the launch of Bibigo Dumplings?that people worldwide enjoy Korean food once a week?has become a reality,” adding, “We will continue to make efforts to promote Bibigo Dumplings more widely around the world and to foster the next generation of K-Food following Bibigo Dumplings.”
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