[Content Commerce] "Mix with Soju for an Instant Cocktail"... 'Sulbang' YouTuber's Magical Recipe

Alcohol-specialized YouTube Channel 'Yankon'
Develops and Introduces Original Cocktail Recipes
Returns After Retirement Video Surpasses 1 Million Views
Develops Liquid Stick 'Conteel' for Making Cocktails with Soju
Links Content Through YouTube Shopping

"The videos were not made with the expectation of rewards from the beginning. I sincerely created them wanting to share at least one more useful piece of information with viewers and help them, and that’s how I received a good response."

The YouTube channel 'Yankon,' which has about 127,000 subscribers, produces content related to alcoholic beverages, especially cocktails, including knowledge and recipes. Lee Yunchang (27), the CEO of Contail who runs this channel, is what is called an 'early bloomer.' Because of this, when his friends who were adults enjoyed drinking gatherings, he could only watch with envy. When he turned 19, the cocktails he encountered with anticipation changed his life. Drawing on his experience majoring in Food and Life Sciences in high school, he began to develop various cocktail recipes himself and started enjoying drinking.

'Yancon' Lee Yunchang, CEO of Conteil.
[Photo by Cafe24]

His interest in cocktails began because of the taste of alcohol. Lee explained, "I enjoyed hanging out with friends drinking soju and beer separately or mixed, but I never felt that the alcohol was 'delicious.' When I tried cocktails, I became interested because it was attractive that you could develop various recipes and enjoy alcohol 'deliciously.'"

Yankon did not start by making content focused on cocktails. After graduating from high school, the main theme of his live streaming was gaming. One day, during a 'sulbang' (a broadcast where alcohol is consumed), he received a good response from viewers and changed his content focus to alcohol. Since then, he began creating content containing knowledge about alcohol and cocktail recipes.

However, the YouTube channel faced a crisis. Channel growth stagnated. Eventually, Lee decided to quit being a creator and work in Japan. To commemorate his retirement, he made and uploaded a guide video on how to enjoy drinking deliciously, intending to pass on everything to his subscribers. Unexpectedly, this video became a huge hit, surpassing 1 million views, and the channel’s subscribers increased by more than 50,000 in a short time. Ultimately, he gave up going to Japan and decided to continue his creator activities.

While producing cocktail-centered content, he launched 'Contail' last year, a cocktail liquid stick that recreates cocktail flavors using soju. He built a Direct to Consumer (D2C) shopping mall for Contail through the e-commerce platform Cafe24 and sells the product. Using YouTube Shopping features, he introduces the product naturally within Yankon channel content so viewers can easily encounter and purchase the product.

Contail is a product that, when one stick is mixed with soju, instantly creates a cocktail flavor. Unlike ready-made products designed to be mixed with water or carbonated water, Contail was developed to minimize the scent of soju and maximize the authentic cocktail taste. For example, mixing the melon sour-flavored Contail with soju can recreate the 'Midori Sour' cocktail. Currently, four flavors are sold, and after being introduced in YouTube content, they have repeatedly sold out and been reordered, leading to production of the fourth batch.

Lee introduced, "It’s not easy to make cocktails that require many ingredients at gatherings like MTs, company dinners, or parties where many people gather, but Contail allows people to enjoy cocktails conveniently and enjoyably, which has received positive reviews."

It also creates synergy with Yankon’s main cocktail videos. He explained, "About 80% of total sales occur on YouTube," adding, "The advantage is that we can naturally introduce products to those interested without disrupting the viewer’s watching experience at all."

Lee plans to develop and introduce new Contail flavors for viewers in the future. He said, "Ultimately, I want to establish myself as a creator and brand that serves as a bridge for people interested in alcohol before they fully start drinking. Like a one-day class teacher who makes it easy and fun, I hope anyone can comfortably meet my content and products at home."