Old Things Are Outdated?... 'Halmaennial' Captivating the Distribution Market

A Generation That Considers the Old as a Taste and Feels 'Hip'
Gongcha and Twosome Place's Autumn Keyword is 'Halmaennial'

Old things were once considered unfashionable. But not anymore. It is now an era where the old is respected as a 'taste' and even felt to be 'hip.' This is the background behind the continuation of the 'Halmaennial Trend' in the distribution industry this fall, which seemed like it would be just a fleeting fad.

Halmaennial is a newly coined term combining 'Halmae,' a dialect word for grandmother, and 'Millennial (born 1981?1996).' It refers to the younger generation who prefer old-fashioned sensibilities or products. Especially in the food and beverage industry, traditional ingredients are used to create familiar yet new flavors, targeting the tastes of Halmaennials for several years.

According to the distribution industry on the 3rd, Gongcha Korea launched 'Butter Sweet Potato 4 Types,' a traditional snack using sweet potatoes, to welcome the autumn season. The lineup includes 'Butter Sweet Potato Cream Milk Tea,' 'Butter Sweet Potato Milk Tea + Pearl,' 'Butter Sweet Potato Cream Milk,' and 'Butter Sweet Potato Cream Smoothie.'

The characteristic is that seasonal sweet potatoes are reinterpreted in Gongcha's unique style. For example, the Butter Sweet Potato Cream Milk Tea blends rich black tea with the sweet and salty charm of salted butter sweet potato. After enjoying the abundant taro foam and crispy sweet potato chips, you mix in the smooth milk tea to drink.

A Gongcha Korea representative said, “As the Halmaennial trend of enjoying traditional ingredients with a new interpretation continues, we expect to capture the taste buds of the MZ generation with the familiar yet new sweet potato flavor.”

Earlier, Twosome Place also launched ‘Our Rice Sikhye’ and ‘Our Jujube Sujeonggwa’ to stimulate the taste of Halmaennials for the autumn season. The sikhye was made to retain rice particles for a chewy drinking experience, and the sujeonggwa was topped with jujube chips.

Twosome Place decided to release new Halmaennial products reinterpreting traditional ingredients again after the ‘Sweet Chestnut Jelly Latte’ released in collaboration with singer BIBI in April gained great attention with its chestnut jelly topping.

A Twosome Place representative said, “As consumers seeking traditional old flavors continue to increase, we introduced sikhye and sujeonggwa, indispensable traditional Korean drinks, in Twosome Place’s version.”

Additionally, HiteJinro launched 'Black Barley Nurungji' in early last month. It is a drink combining barley sungnyung, a traditional dessert beverage that ancestors drank instead of coffee. It maximizes the unique taste and aroma of nurungji while containing no caffeine, coloring, or sugar, making it suitable for daily consumption instead of coffee or water.

A HiteJinro Beverage representative said, “Barley sungnyung is a nostalgic drink that brings familiarity and warmth to the older generation and freshness to the MZ generation.”

Halmaennial started spreading in the early 2020s and seemed like it would be a short-lived trend, but it still shows a strong presence in cafes, convenience stores, and confectionery in the food and beverage industry. It is now expanding from a simple trend to a category of its own.

Why do Halmaennial products using traditional ingredients such as yakgwa, black sesame, injeolmi, mugwort, and red bean enjoy long-term popularity? It is because of the current era that values personal taste. Millennials follow their own preferences rather than the mainstream and feel that this is hip.

A distribution industry official said, “The Halmaennial generation does not simply like old things but enjoys the process of adding their own sensibility to the old and digesting it as their own while reinterpreting it. To continue the Halmaennial trend, efforts to present newness in texture or visuals must continue.”