[Report] "Today, I am the Jjapagetti Chef of Seongsu-dong"... Taking Over the 'MZ Hot Place' at Forty

Nongshim Opens Popup Store in Seongsu-dong
Operates as Snack Bar Concept Until Next Month 11
Launches New Product 'Jjapagetti The Black' for 40th Anniversary
Expands Overseas Strategy with Promotions for Foreigners and Exports

When you exit Seoul Subway Line 2 Seongsu Station through Exit 3 and walk about 200 meters, you can see a two-story building with an olive-colored exterior that catches the eye. It is Nongshim's flagship Jjajang ramen, Jjapaghetti, popup store. The exterior is decorated with graphics featuring the product’s unique packaging and colors, the exclusive Jjapaghetti character 'Jjaseu,' and ingredients.

The Jjapaghetti snack bar popup store, designed with a snack bar concept, will operate here for one month from the 12th of this month until the 11th of next month. It welcomes visitors daily from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Although the official opening time on the day was 2 p.m., many people passing by during lunchtime showed early interest by asking the staff when they could enter.

Nongshim Chapagetti Snack Bar Popup Store Interior
[Photo by Nongshim]

The interior of the popup store is divided into two main areas. On the first floor, there is a 'Cook Zone' where visitors can taste Jjapaghetti and various ramen menus sold by Nongshim through kiosks, as well as a goods store featuring products inspired by these items. In the Cook Zone, customers can choose between ordering cooked dishes or self-cooking. The ordering option allows customers to select from pre-prepared Jjapaghetti menus such as Jjapaguri, Mala Jjapaghetti, and Jjapaghetti with green onion kimchi and cheese toppings. The self-cooking option provides Shin Ramyun and Neoguri, where customers can choose their preferred noodle firmness, spiciness, and toppings, then use the self-cooking machine to enjoy ramen tailored to their taste.

The second floor consists of an exhibition space showcasing the brand history of Jjapaghetti, a History Zone arranged with items reminiscent of past memories including a snack bar, and a 'Play Zone' where visitors can win prizes through simple games. There is also a corner where visitors input their Jjapaghetti eating preferences on a screen and receive a certificate based on the results.

Nongshim Chapagetti Snack Bar Pop-up Store
Photo by Nongshim

The Jjapaghetti popup store was planned to celebrate the product’s 40th anniversary this year. First introduced in March 1984, Jjapaghetti was created with the purpose of allowing Koreans to easily enjoy their favorite Jjajangmyeon at home. The brand name, a combination of Jjajangmyeon and spaghetti, was designed to attract children’s interest and differentiate it from existing products that mainly featured 'ㅇㅇ Jjajang.' As of last year, cumulative sales reached 9.1 billion packs, with total revenue amounting to 3.9 trillion KRW. It holds about 80% of the domestic Jjajang ramen market share and is the second best-selling product after Nongshim’s Shin Ramyun, the top product in the overall ramen market.

Nongshim introduces a new product, 'Jjapagetti The Black,' to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Jjapagetti's launch.

Shim Gyu-cheol, head of Nongshim’s marketing office, explained, “Jjapaghetti is the ramen with the most hashtags on social media (SNS), with about 280,000. It ranks second in sales after Shin Ramyun and is enjoyed by people of all ages and genders, which has led to many sharing various memories related to it with friends and acquaintances.”

To commemorate the 40th anniversary of Jjapaghetti, Nongshim plans to launch a new product, 'Jjapaghetti The Black,' on the 29th. The new product features dried noodles. To highlight Jjapaghetti’s characteristic thick noodles, Nongshim used the thickest dried noodles among its similar product lines. Using dried noodles reduces calories by more than 20%, and compared to the existing fried noodles, the texture is much chewier. The soup includes a newly added beef flavor, and the toppings are larger than those in the existing product. It also contains 262 mg of calcium, which is 37% of the recommended daily intake of 700 mg, enhancing its nutritional value.

Nongshim plans to develop Jjapaghetti as a global brand in addition to its existing strategy of expanding overseas centered on Shin Ramyun. First, through the popup store, they intend to promote the product and increase awareness among foreign consumers visiting the site. The event space includes signs in English, Japanese, and Chinese, and staff capable of foreign language consultation are also stationed.

They are also considering ways to expand exports. Shim said, “When Shin Ramyun entered overseas markets, the bagged noodles followed a standardization strategy that conveyed the characteristics of the domestic product, while the cup noodles adopted a localization strategy tailored to the competitive environment of each country. For Jjapaghetti, we plan to approach the cup noodles and 'Jjapaguri' according to the culture and characteristics of each country.”