Kim's Club Direct Import 9,990 Won Wine Demand Explodes
Convenience Store Discount Event Lacking 'Ha Jung-woo Wine' Similarity
Consumers feeling the burden of the economic downturn are flocking to ultra-low-priced discount wine products, according to an analysis.
On the 16th, E-Land Kim's Club announced that its 'Everyone's Wine Plus' series, which directly imports overseas wines and offers them at 9,990 won, is gaining great popularity among wine consumers. The Portuguese red wine 'Confidential Reserva,' first introduced last month when the series was launched, sold more than 4,000 bottles as a single item within a month of its release. It was reported that all current stock has been sold out and a reorder has been placed with the winery.
At Kim's Club, as 'ultra-low-priced wine' attracts attention, the Everyone's Wine Plus series priced at 9,990 won accounted for 20% of total sales as of October. Considering that this series was launched in October and accounts for less than 1% of the total wine volume, it can be estimated that demand has exploded.
In particular, Kim's Club directly contracted with the Portuguese Lisbon winery 'Casa Santos Lima' to source 'Confidential Reserva' in large quantities, and news spread that Kim's Club sells this wine at about half the overseas retail price, causing what is known as a 'purchase frenzy.' Kim's Club plans to release two more Italian sparkling wines targeting the year-end season due to the series' unexpectedly high popularity. These include the red wine '1900 Casali Malvo Gentile' 750ml and the white '1900 Casali Malvasia Dolce' 750ml, both directly contracted with Casali Viticoltori, a winery in Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy.
This showed a similar pattern to the previously famed 'craze item' 'Call Me Later.' 'Call Me Later' is the 'Ha Jung-woo Art Wine' series launched by convenience store Seven Eleven. Seven Eleven introduced the 'Call Me Later' wine, famous as the wine Ha Jung-woo usually stacks and drinks in quantities of 100 bottles. The label features one of the artworks presented at the 'Hit the Road' exhibition, where actor and painter Ha Jung-woo showcased works inspired by his experiences during filming in Morocco in 2022. Although the retail price was 29,000 won, it was reportedly available at about a 20% discount through various promotions. This wine gained popularity on various social media platforms at launch, selling out the initial limited stock in less than 30 minutes. This reflects the 'dito consumption' trend (consumers following celebrities' tastes and trends) and shows that consumers selectively purchase wines that are cheaper compared to local overseas prices.
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