May Nationwide Dining Industry Market Weather Report
In May, the domestic food service industry recorded sales of approximately 11.9758 trillion KRW, an increase of 1.12% compared to the same period last year. This figure represents an 8.68% increase compared to April (11.0195 trillion KRW).
On the 3rd, Finda, a big data fintech (finance + technology) company specializing in loans, released the "National Food Service Business District Weather Report," which captures nationwide food service business district trends, through its commercial district analysis platform, OpenUp.
Looking at the 17 provinces and metropolitan cities nationwide, local commercial districts showed signs of recovery, while Seoul continued to experience a decline in sales. Among the six major metropolitan cities, Incheon (7.75%) had the highest sales growth rate nationwide, followed by Gwangju (4.75%), Busan (2.36%), Daegu (2.14%), Daejeon (1.55%), and Ulsan (1.21%). On the other hand, Seoul (-0.71%), which has the largest sales volume in the country, showed a decline due to decreased sales in the three major office districts: Gangnam-gu (-7.09%), Yeongdeungpo-gu (-2.12%), and Jongno-gu (-2.23%).
Jeju recently faced a crisis due to a sharp decline in domestic tourists, but some regions and indicators showed positive figures. Jeju's sales decreased slightly by 0.24% compared to the same period last year, but sales increased by 6.07% compared to the previous month. While Seogwipo-si (-2.97%) saw a decrease in sales compared to last year, Jeju-si (0.93%) experienced an increase.
At the city and county level, the highest sales growth rate compared to the same period last year was recorded in Bonghwa-gun, Gyeongbuk (34.64%), followed by Jangsu-gun, Jeonbuk (22.09%), Hapcheon-gun, Gyeongnam (16.16%), Goryeong-gun, Gyeongbuk (15.52%), and Jindo-gun, Jeonnam (15.25%). The highest sales growth rate compared to the previous month was in Gokseong-gun, Jeonnam (64.22%), followed by Bonghwa-gun, Gyeongbuk (38.74%), Yeongyang-gun, Gyeongbuk (37.32%), Pyeongchang-gun, Gangwon (36.20%), and Ulleung-gun, Gyeongbuk (32.57%).
Finda also disclosed detailed status by food service sub-sector. The sub-sector with the highest sales growth rate compared to the same period last year was buffet (16.69%), followed by fast food (7.65%), bakery (2.80%), Korean food (2.41%), and cafes (2.24%). The buffet and fast food sectors have maintained year-on-year sales growth for five consecutive months this year. In May, Korean food recorded the largest sales volume among food service sub-sectors, with 5.243 trillion KRW. The average sales price for Korean food was 37,546 KRW, showing an increase of 3.76% compared to the previous month and 0.22% compared to the previous year.
OpenUp is a big data commercial district analysis platform acquired by Finda in July 2022. It processes over 110 million accumulated sales big data using artificial intelligence (AI) technology to provide estimated data close to reality. The commercial district analysis service is completely free and is updated monthly with sales and new store status nationwide.
Hwang Changhee, Product Owner of Finda OpenUp, said, "As local food service business districts centered around the six major metropolitan cities show signs of recovery, consumer sentiment is gradually improving. However, since the recovery trend varies by detailed regions even within Seoul, where recovery is still slow, prospective food service entrepreneurs should make careful decisions based on data from the regions they are considering for startup."
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