Shinsegae Food Transforms 'Olban' into Premium Ready Meals [The World of Ready Meals]

Lee Jihak & Lee Yeeun, Shinsegae Food Brand & Category Managers
Balancing Offline and Online... Rapid Market Adaptation as Growth Strategy
Focusing on Customized HMR 'AirCook' Aligned with Air Fryer Popularity Trends

[Asia Economy Reporter Song Seung-yoon] Olban originally started as a Korean buffet brand under Shinsegae Food. However, as the proportion of single-person households increased and demand for home meal replacements (HMR) grew, the number of offline stores gradually decreased, and it has now established itself as a fully premium HMR brand.

Lee Ji-hak, Brand Manager of Brand Marketing at Shinsegae Food, said in an interview with Asia Economy on the 25th, "Recently, due to external factors such as the popularization of easy cooking appliances and delivery fee increases, convenience-focused frozen products have continuously grown, intensifying market competition. As the need for convenient meals to satisfy diverse demands rises, we are accelerating our market penetration by strengthening the AirCook brand."

Olban's sales within Shinsegae Food nearly doubled from 59.1 billion KRW in 2019 to 100 billion KRW last year. This year, sales reached 25 billion KRW by the first quarter. Shinsegae Food expects to achieve 120 billion KRW in sales by the end of this year.

This upward trend was mainly due to a swift response to the rapidly changing HMR market. Shinsegae Food shifted its focus from offline to online and, following the increasing household penetration of air fryers, launched the AirCook brand in 2019, a dedicated HMR brand for air fryer use. Currently, AirCook offers over 30 products and is continuously expanding its lineup.

Lee Ye-eun, Category Manager of Food Distribution Marketing Team at Shinsegae Food, emphasized, "Every time we prepare a new product, we put a lot of thought into presenting differentiated products unique to AirCook to consumers. We plan to focus on nurturing it as a future-oriented food culture brand."