[National Brand] 'Trusted Drinking Water' Recommended by Lim Young-woong... Jeju Samdasoo

Launched in 1998... 26 Years as No.1 in Domestic Bottled Water Market
Market Share at 40.3% as of Last Year
Threats Include Cost-Effective PB Products and Competitors' Increased Investments

Jeju Samdasoo, introduced by Jeju Special Self-Governing Province Development Corporation in 1998, has maintained its position as the number one product in the domestic bottled water market for 26 years. The brand name Jeju Samdasoo was created by combining 'Samda' (三多), derived from Jeju Island's nickname 'Samdado,' which means the island of wind, stones, and many women, with 'Soo' (水), meaning water. Jeju Samdasoo was also the first to design bottled water containers in a square shape, whereas all bottled water containers were cylindrical at the time of its launch.

Jeju Samdasoo Photo by Jeju Special Self-Governing Province Development Corporation

Jeju Samdasoo uses volcanic bedrock water as its source, which is formed at an altitude of over 1450 meters on Hallasan Mountain and passes through basalt and volcanic ash layers for 18 years. The water intake source is fixed at one location, and the surrounding soil and water quality are strictly managed. Jeju Development Corporation has purchased and manages land equivalent to 100 soccer fields around the water intake source, and since 2020, the water intake area on the mid-slope of Hallasan has been designated as a special groundwater resource management zone by Jeju Special Self-Governing Province to preserve the environment and restrict development. They have also established a real-time monitoring system, including over 20,000 water quality tests annually and random water quality analyses every three hours. According to the corporation, Jeju Samdasoo has never received any administrative sanctions related to water quality since its launch.

In September last year, Jeju Samdasoo Green, the first bottled water product to introduce a QR code on its cap, was launched. Currently, about 40% of Jeju Samdasoo production is Jeju Samdasoo Green (label-free product), and the plan is to expand production and sales to 100% by 2026. To proactively respond to the demand for eco-friendly products, they are also promoting an eco-friendly smart factory (L6) with a completion target of 2027.

Considering consumer delivery convenience, the Jeju Samdasoo home delivery application was launched in 2019. As of last month, the number of members exceeded 372,000, and the cumulative number of orders surpassed 2.2 million. In March, trot singer Lim Young-woong was appointed as the brand model, focusing on enhancing product reliability. Jeju Development Corporation explained, "Lim Young-woong's unique upright and humble attitude and his trustworthy image across all generations align well with Jeju Samdasoo's brand image as 'water you can trust and drink,' which is why he was selected as the new brand model."

Jeju Samdasoo brand model Lim Young-woong Photo by Jeju Special Self-Governing Province Development Corporation

According to NielsenIQ Korea, as of last year, Jeju Samdasoo holds a 40.3% share of the domestic bottled water market. It leads by a wide margin over the second-place Lotte Chilsung Beverage's Icis (13.1%) and third-place Nongshim's Baeksansu (8.3%). During this period, Jeju Samdasoo's sales amounted to 345.6 billion KRW based on Jeju Development Corporation's B2B (business-to-business) sales.

Despite its solid position, there are threats. The domestic bottled water market, which was worth 1 trillion KRW in 2020, expanded to 2.3 trillion KRW last year as competitors entered, and the number of related brands increased to about 300. Private brand (PB) bottled waters emphasizing cost-effectiveness, such as Coupang's Tamsa Water, are also gaining presence. Jeju Samdasoo's market share slightly declined from 42.4% in 2019, while PB bottled water's share rose to 22% last year.

Existing bottled water companies, which had lagged in market share, are also increasing investments. Pulmuone's bottled water subsidiary, Pulmuone Saemmul, recently acquired 290,000 shares (100% stake) of bottled water company Saemsoseul for about 25.3 billion KRW. Pulmuone Saemmul explained that this was to secure additional water sources and improve sales and profitability. Dongwon F&B is also proceeding with procedures to expand its fourth bottled water factory in Eumseong, Chungcheongbuk-do. They have already obtained water intake permits related to the factory expansion and plan to receive building permits by October and start construction within the year.

The process of selecting a distributor for Jeju Samdasoo outside Jeju Island next year is also attracting attention. Jeju Development Corporation holds public tenders for distribution rights every four years. From the product's launch until 2011, Nongshim handled this, and since 2012, Kwangdong Pharmaceutical has been the contracted company, operating for 12 years. In the 2021 tender, not only Kwangdong Pharmaceutical but also LG Household & Health Care and Lotte Chilsung Beverage showed interest. An industry insider said, "In the rapidly growing domestic bottled water market, the distribution rights for Jeju Samdasoo, which has annual sales exceeding 300 billion KRW, are highly coveted in the distribution industry," adding, "It is expected that multiple companies will compete."