[Distribution Hot People] No Need for Fancy Wine... MZ and Aju Fans' Hot Place Bottle Bunker

Interview with Lee Young-eun, Lotte Mart Team Leader
Sanctuary of Over 4,000 Wine Varieties Sold
Over 80 Varieties Tasted at 'Tasting Tap'
Aiming to Be a Nationwide Wine Playground

On the afternoon of the 15th, Lee Young-eun, team leader of Bottle Bunker, is posing with a bottle of wine at Lotte Mart Zeta Plex Jamsil branch in Songpa-gu, Seoul.

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Chun-han] "Bottle Bunker is not just a space for simple shopping but a playground concept for the MZ generation (Millennials + Generation Z). Today, I wanted to create a store that people would want to visit again even if they don't make a purchase."

On the afternoon of the 15th, we met Lee Young-eun, the team leader of Bottle Bunker, known as a wine sanctuary among the 20s and 30s generation, at Lotte Mart Zeta Plex Jamsil branch in Songpa-gu, Seoul. Bottle Bunker occupies 70% of the entire first floor area of the Zeta Plex Jamsil store. The store is the largest in Korea with 1,322㎡ (about 400 pyeong) and sells a total of over 4,000 types of wine.

Team Leader Lee said, "Existing wine shops often recommend wines for the purpose of sales. Most customers come to buy the wine they want but end up buying other expensive wines. Our goal was to create a comfortable and unburdened store, a place with plenty to see even if you don't necessarily buy wine. We believed that this would become a space where even those who have never experienced wine before could enjoy and try it."

Lee is a veteran with 13 years of experience in the alcoholic beverage category. He was confident that the domestic wine market would grow even before COVID-19. He stated, "The threshold for young people to experience wine has been continuously lowering. Since alcoholic beverages need to be purchased at offline stores, I thought it was necessary to keep developing this."

The average price per bottle at Bottle Bunker is about 50,000 KRW, which is more than three times higher than a general hypermarket (15,000 KRW). Lee emphasized, "The average spending per customer is about 100,000 KRW, and many customers buy not just one bottle but two to three bottles. The secret to our popularity is securing and showcasing products that were previously unavailable in Korea."

Lotte Mart also operates a ‘Tasting Tap’ where customers can sample about 80 types of wine. Here, customers charge money onto a dedicated bracelet, touch the bracelet to a machine, and can taste 50ml of the wine they want to try. Lee explained, "This is currently the hottest spot in Bottle Bunker, and customer responses are very positive. We held idea meetings for six months to create differentiated content. Then we found out that this model exists in Paris, France, and decided to introduce it."

Bottle Bunker plans to open stores at Gwangju Sangmu and Changwon Jungang branches in the first half of this year, and add three more stores in the second half. Lee said, "Gwangju already has high alcohol sales, and Changwon is within an hour from Busan, so we judged there is a good chance of success. Our goal is to open stores in Seoul, the metropolitan area, and key regional locations."