'Jelly' Surpasses Dubai Chocolate Record... "Followed 3 Golden Rules for Huge Success" [Interview]

Lee Jinwoo, GS Retail Processed Food Team MD Interview
"The Three Rules for Hit New Products: The Birth of Sweet Mix Jelly"
"Searched for a Pectin-Handling Factory for a Month and a Half to Preserve the Original Flavor"
"Hoping Sweet Mix Jelly Will Become Korea's Representative Jelly"

There is a jelly that sold 2 million units within just three months of its launch. The product is GS Retail’s ‘Sweet Mix Jelly,’ which was released in November last year. Sweet Mix Jelly surpassed the record set by Dubai Chocolate, which had the shortest sales period last year, setting a new record for the fastest sales. It also surpassed the sales of staple convenience store items like ramen and snacks, ranking first in total processed food sales.

Lee Jin-woo, MD of the Processed Food Team at GS Retail who planned Sweet Mix Jelly, emphasized in an interview with Asia Economy at GS Retail headquarters in Gangnam-gu, Seoul on the 13th that there are three principles for successful new products. The first is ‘Does it go viral?’ The second is ‘Is it unavailable domestically?’ The third is ‘Is it sold at a high price only domestically?’ According to him, by classifying products based on these characteristics, it is possible to select new products with a high probability of success.

Lee Jin-woo, MD of the Processed Food Team at GS Retail, is introducing Sweet Mix Jelly. (Photo by GS Retail)

Sweet Mix Jelly was also born based on these principles. The original form of Sweet Mix Jelly, ‘Swedish Jelly,’ was first introduced in Korea around August last year through the creator ‘Jyun Unni.’ Jyun Unni is known as the ‘Moon Ik-jeom of the dessert world’ for being the first to introduce popular items like ‘Dubai Chocolate’ and ‘Towel Cake’ to Korea.

At that time, Jyun Unni introduced Swedish Jelly from the Swedish brand Bubs. Unlike most jellies sold domestically that use animal-based protein gelatin, Swedish Jelly is made using pectin, a plant-based protein. It features a unique chewy texture rather than being hard or soft, with a bubblegum-like flavor. However, since it is not well known in Asian countries, it must be purchased through overseas direct import in Korea. Buying through overseas direct import costs about 40,000 KRW for 500g, making it very expensive.

Creator 'Jyeon Unni' is introducing Swedish jelly. YouTube screen capture.

Lee explained, “Swedish Jelly became a trend on social media due to its unique texture, is not easily available domestically, and is very expensive when purchased through overseas direct import. All these principles aligned, leading us to decide to commercialize Swedish Jelly.”

The full-scale preparation for launch began in September last year. The first step was to find a factory capable of producing the jelly. However, it took one and a half months just to find a suitable manufacturer. Since most jellies distributed domestically are made with gelatin, it was difficult to find a factory that could handle pectin. Eventually, about ten factories, including those in China and Japan, were selected, and after visiting nine of them, a suitable production factory was found.

Lee said, “We insisted on using only pectin, a plant-based ingredient, to replicate the original taste of Swedish Jelly. Because there are not many factories that can handle pectin, we were able to launch faster than other companies that tried to use gelatin.” Sweet Mix Jelly was launched on November 28 last year, about three months after preparations began.

Immediately after its release, Sweet Mix Jelly was a huge hit. It surpassed 1 million units sold in just 39 days, the shortest period ever for jelly and chocolate products, and on the 29th of last month, an additional 1 million units were sold, reaching a cumulative total of 2 million units in 68 days. This is faster than Dubai Chocolate, which set the previous record by selling 1 million units in 46 days and 2 million units in 99 days last year.

As of the 17th, Sweet Mix Jelly and Jyun Unni’s Sweet Mix Jelly rank first and second in total sales in the processed food category, which includes best-selling convenience store items like ramen and snacks. This is the first time a jelly product has taken the top spot in total processed food sales. In fact, Sweet Mix Jelly records a 100% sell-through rate within three days after ordering. Due to its explosive popularity, stores often run out of stock during evening hours.

Lee emphasized that the trend for new products has changed significantly compared to the past. The product life cycle has shortened, and even if a product is advertised on TV, it can be ignored if it does not meet consumer demand. Consumption patterns have also changed. Recently, ‘DITO consumption’ has become popular in the dessert industry, where consumers who see popular overseas products on social media want to try them themselves. For Sweet Mix Jelly, the highest purchase ratio is among people in their teens and twenties, driven largely by the desire to try trendy desserts seen on social media.

Lee said, “In the past, new products lasted six months to a year, but recently, product life cycles have shortened to less than three months. Unlike 10 to 20 years ago, the era of smooth communication via mobile phones has arrived, and products that do not meet customer needs quickly die out.”

The release of Sweet Mix Jelly 2 in collaboration with Jyun Unni on the 4th was also based on this background. Lee explained, “Jyun Unni has introduced many products to Korea for the first time, including Dubai Chocolate, Towel Cake, and Swedish Jelly. She is highly responsible for her products and trusted by her subscribers. We thought that upgrading the taste of the existing product and releasing it together would give it much more originality.” GS25 is preparing several product lineups with Jyun Unni even after the launch of Sweet Mix Jelly 2.

Jinwoo Lee, MD of Processed Food Team at GS Retail. (Photo by GS Retail)

Lee said, “Recently, ‘dupe consumption,’ where imitation luxury bags sell more than genuine luxury bags, is a trend. Sweet Mix Jelly is a cheap imitation of expensive Swedish Jelly, priced at 2,500 KRW per 100g, so many people buy it, but we want to completely shed the image of being a counterfeit.” He added, “Just as Haribo is thought of as Germany’s representative jelly, we hope Sweet Mix Jelly will become Korea’s representative jelly.”

The next hit products Lee pointed out are the bubblegum-shaped British ‘Drumstick Jelly’ and the American Silkygem’s ‘Crystal Candy.’ He said, “Although Jyun Unni did not introduce Drumstick Jelly, several influencers have, so I think it will sell well by emphasizing its soft texture. Crystal Candy is a handmade candy that looks like a mineral and is sold domestically through overseas direct import for about 100,000 KRW, so we expect it to be the next hit product.”