Mega Coffee Opens 1st Branch in Ulaanbaatar on the 30th
High Potential with Many Young Customers and Strong Hallyu Acceptance
Expansion Includes Tous Les Jours, Lotteria, Mom's Touch, and More
The "Land of Youth," Mongolia, has transformed into a battleground for K-franchises. Following bakery brand Tous Les Jours and burger brands Lotteria and Mom's Touch, the representative low-cost coffee franchise Mega MGC Coffee is also entering Mongolia. Although Mongolia's population is only 3.5 million, the proportion of young people is high, and the favorable perception of K-culture makes it a market with high growth potential.
According to industry sources on the 28th, Mega Coffee will open its first store in Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia, on the 30th. This marks Mega Coffee's first overseas expansion, and it will pioneer the market in the form of a master franchise (MF). The MF partner is Asia Pharma, Mongolia's leading pharmaceutical import and distribution company, which will operate both directly managed stores and franchise businesses. The first Mongolian store will open on the first floor of Asia Pharma's headquarters building in downtown Ulaanbaatar, covering an area of 100㎡.
A Mega Coffee official said, "The Mongolian market was selected as the first global expansion site because consumers have a high interest and understanding of Korean culture and brands, and domestic companies are already successfully operating in various fields, making it valuable as a testbed."
Mongolia is a small country with a population of 3.49 million. However, 65% of the population is under 35 years old, indicating high growth potential. Moreover, rapid urbanization has concentrated half of the total population in the capital, Ulaanbaatar, creating an environment conducive to the establishment of Korean-style distribution systems. With a large young population, the favorability toward K-content and K-food is also high.
As a result, retail channels such as E-Mart, CU, and GS25 have consecutively entered Mongolia, and it has emerged as a new battleground for K-franchises. Ulaanbaatar, lined with Korean-style apartments and Korean brands visible every block, is even called "Mongtan New City" among Korean travelers to Mongolia.
Among K-franchises, Tous Les Jours opened its first store in Mongolia in 2016 and currently operates 19 stores. It has steadily opened stores in key commercial areas with high foot traffic in downtown Ulaanbaatar, such as busy districts and shopping malls, and recently opened a flagship store, the "Mongolia Global Park Branch," featuring the latest BI identical to that in Korea. A CJ Foodville official said, "Mongolia tends to prefer cakes, and we have launched the signature product 'Mary Queens' cake from the domestic flagship store 'Tous Les Jours CJ CheilJedang Center Branch' locally, receiving high customer response."
Lotteria, which first entered in 2017, opened its 1st store Arongoro Branch, 2nd store Tingiis Branch, 3rd store Jaison Branch, 4th store Botanic Branch, and recently opened its 5th store in the large shopping mall Nomin Plaza. The store covers about 260㎡ and has 140 seats. A Lotteria official said, "Last year, the POS sales of local stores in Mongolia increased by more than 80% compared to the previous year," adding, "We plan to actively expand the brand through further growth."
Mom's Touch, which opened its first store last September, is gaining popularity among the younger generation and is preparing to open its 6th store next month. Mom's Touch plans to open 10 stores by the end of the year to expand local customer contact points and secure a leading position in the burger market in Mongolia. A Mom's Touch official said, "The Mongolian president visited the local partner's chicken processing plant, showing the national interest in K-franchises is very high."
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