'Coffee Republic' Verified... Nespresso CEO "Korea Sales Grew 46 Times"

Nespresso Holds New Campaign Events Only in the US and Korea
"Korea, Once an Importer of Coffee Culture, Now an Exporter"
Aiming to Solidify Its Position as the Leading Home Cafe Brand with Vertuo This Year

"Last year, Nespresso Korea's sales grew 46 times compared to 2008. This shows how special the Korean market is. Nespresso holds global new campaign media events in only two places: the United States and Korea."

On the 15th, Park Seong-yong, CEO of Nespresso Korea, emphasized the importance of the Korean market at the '2025 New Campaign Media Event' held at the Fairmont Ambassador Seoul in Yeouido, Seoul.

Sungyong Park, CEO of Nespresso Korea. Provided by Nespresso Korea

CEO Park said, "There are over 100,000 coffee specialty stores in Korea, and the number of coffee shops per capita ranks first or second worldwide," adding, "While coffee culture was once imported from abroad, Korea has now become a market with significant influence that exports unique cultures such as iced Americano."

The annual coffee consumption per adult in Korea is 405 cups, far exceeding the global average of 152 cups, more than double. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic and the era of high inflation, the home cafe market has been continuously growing. The biggest beneficiary of this trend is Nespresso.

According to CEO Park, Nespresso Korea, which started its business domestically in 2007, saw its sales last year increase 46 times compared to 2008. Nespresso, which operates stores in 93 countries worldwide, held media events only in New York and Seoul. However, CEO Park did not disclose the exact sales figures.

At the center of this rapid growth was the capsule coffee 'Vertuo,' launched in 2018. Vertuo captured the number one position in the domestic capsule coffee market within five years of its release. Last year's sales grew 13 times compared to 2018. CEO Park stated, "Nespresso regards the Korean market as a core growth pillar of its global business and will deliver the value of sustainable coffee culture and lifestyle to consumers."

Sungyong Park, CEO of Nespresso Korea. Provided by Nespresso Korea

CEO Park identified Nespresso's vision for this year as establishing itself as the representative brand of Korea's home cafe culture. He said, "The key word chosen for this is 'collaboration.'" For example, after launching the world's first 'Starbucks ® by Nespresso for Vertuo' last year, this year they plan to introduce Blue Bottle's capsule coffee. They also intend to strengthen their position by partnering not only with coffee specialty stores but also with large retailers like Costco.

Meanwhile, Nespresso has been operating a program to collect and recycle coffee capsules since 2011 for Korean consumers who value sustainability. CEO Park said, "As a result, last year we recycled 2,248 tons of capsules, successfully reducing 1,810 tons of carbon," adding, "We will continue to lead in realizing sustainable values and resource circulation."

Chef Edward Lee and actress Kim Go-eun participated in the Nespresso media event. Photo by Nespresso

At the event, Nespresso unveiled the 2025 new campaign video titled 'The Missing Coffee, The Unsolved Mystery.' In this video, brand ambassador Kim Go-eun starred alongside Hollywood stars George Clooney, Eva Longoria, and Camille Cottin. The story revolves around a detective uncovering the truth after an heiress's Nespresso coffee capsules are stolen, with Kim Go-eun appearing as a key suspect.

The event also featured Edward Lee, the runner-up of the Netflix program 'The Great Chef,' as a special guest, who introduced the 'Nespresso Layer Cake.' This coffee pairing dessert was developed using Nespresso's coffee capsule 'Arpeggio,' and Kim Go-eun demonstrated dessert making on-site together with him.