The Era of 3,500 Won for a Single Roll of 'Seomin Eumsik' Gimbap... You Can Eat It for 1,900 Won at Convenience Stores

Launch of Ultra-Low Price Products and Discounts on Near-Expiration Items

As the prices of dining-out items continue to rise following those of ingredients, the burden on consumers is increasing. In response, convenience store chains are launching ultra-low-priced products to attract consumers in this era of high inflation.

Emart24 announced on the 5th that it will implement the price stabilization project "End of Imagination." First, it will introduce two types of gimbap priced at 1,900 won and bibimbap priced at 3,600 won.

The gimbap is about 45% cheaper on average than other gimbap products and uses eight ingredients including ham, crab sticks, fish cake, and burdock root. The bibimbap is about 20% cheaper compared to similar products. It is topped with seven ingredients such as Korean pork bulgogi, romaine lettuce, shredded carrots, and seasoned bean sprouts.

Emart24's Bibimbap and Gimbap launched as part of the 'Price Stabilization Project'
[Image source=Provided by Emart24]

Gimbap, a leading "common people's food," is the menu item that has seen the highest price increase among major dining-out dishes this year. According to the Korea Consumer Agency's price information portal "Chamgagyeok" on the 15th, the average price of eight popular dining-out menus in Seoul rose by 4.0% from January to November this year. Among the menus, gimbap's price increase was the largest, rising 5.3% from 3,323 won in January to 3,500 won last month.

Additionally, Emart24 is selling No Brand products such as the "Daily Protein Bar," "Cream Cheese Cookie," and "Spicy Garlic Tteokbokki Snack," all priced at 1,000 won. More than 20 such ultra-low-priced products are planned to be launched this year.

Convenience store GS25 is offering a service on its mobile app "Our Neighborhood GS" that sells lunch boxes, sandwiches, gimbap, and other items with less than three hours remaining before expiration at discounts of up to 45%. In November last year, the average sales of GS25's "closing discount" products increased 5.3 times compared to the same month the previous year.

CU's subscription service "Practical One Meal" offers 15 products at a 20% discount for 30 days. The "Baek Jong-won Triple Meat Set" (5,500 won) can be purchased for 4,400 won, and the "Salsa Fusilli & Sweet Potato Salad" (4,900 won) for 3,920 won. CU plans to continue targeting consumers by offering new private brand (PB) products at affordable prices in the future.