Lotteria Sells Twice the Target Amount of Napoli Mafia Burger
Emergency Airlift of Mozzarella Cheese Patties Due to Supply Shortage
Moms Touch Beef Burger Stores See 61% Sales Increase
Shake Shack's Collaboration with Chef Oh Juntak... Burger Sales Triple
A fresh breeze has finally blown through the domestic burger market. New products collaborated on with chefs who appeared on the Netflix cooking show 'Black & White Chef' have been selling like hotcakes.
Despite the high prices, 'sold-out' situations continued, prompting some franchise headquarters to urgently airlift key ingredients. In the burger market, where there is no 'absolute champion,' the Black & White Chef effect has significantly helped brands gain recognition.
According to the food service industry on the 25th, Lotteria, operated by Lotte GRS, airlifted mozzarella cheese, the key ingredient of the 'Napoli Mafia Mozzarella Burger' developed in collaboration with Chef Kwon Seong-jun.
Earlier, Lotteria released the Napoli Mafia Burger, co-developed with Chef Kwon, well known as the winner of Black & White Chef and the 'Napoli Mafia,' on the 16th of last month. Over about 40 days until the 23rd, more than 2 million units were sold, double the target sales volume.
This burger sold faster than expected, causing supply issues with the main ingredient, the 'Mozza Brioche Bun.' The quantity Lotteria had secured in advance could not keep up with the explosive sales. Within a month of starting sales, the initial stock was completely sold out, and the sold-out situation lasted for a week. A Lotteria official explained, "We airlifted the mozzarella cheese patties, the main ingredient of this burger," adding, "The Napoli Mafia Mozzarella Burger resumed sales from the 21st."
The Napoli Mafia Mozzarella Burger used a Mozza Brioche Bun, which melts mozzarella cheese and cheddar cheese into the bun itself, instead of sesame or brioche buns. The sauce also used basil and tomato, representative ingredients of Italian cuisine. Because of this, the mozzarella burger is evaluated to have elevated Lotteria's burger quality to a premium burger level.
Moms Touch and SPC's Shake Shack also launched burger products in collaboration with famous chefs. Moms Touch partnered with Edward Lee, the runner-up of 'Black & White Chef,' and Shake Shack collaborated with Chef Oh Jun-tak. Moms Touch created a beef burger and a chicken burger called Cyber Burger with a special bacon jam. Since sales began on the 18th, the average daily sales of stores selling the beef burger and Cyber Burger increased by 61% compared to the previous week. During the Super Early Bird (pre-sale) event held on the 5th, reservations sold out within 30 minutes of opening.
Moms Touch headquarters conducted pre-education and quality checks on the new menu recipes developed directly by Chef Edward Lee for all franchise stores. Out of about 1,450 stores nationwide, only 320 stores that passed the test started selling the burgers. The remaining franchises plan to sequentially sell the products by the 6th of next month. Currently, the number of stores selling the products has increased to about 500.
Shake Shack's chicken burgers 'Lime Chili Tak' and 'Basil Pesto Tak,' developed in collaboration with Chef Oh Jun-tak of Namyoungtak, feature tender chicken patties prepared using the sous-vide method, a low-temperature vacuum cooking technique. Sales during the week following the launch on the 18th tripled compared to chicken burger sales during the same period last year. The products will be sold for a limited time until April.
The domestic burger market experienced explosive growth starting from the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the global market research firm Euromonitor, the domestic burger market size expanded from about 3 trillion won in 2020 to about 5 trillion won in 2023. However, competition intensified with the entry of overseas brands into the domestic market. Existing brands like Lotteria, McDonald's, and Burger King competed, followed by overseas brands such as Shake Shack, Five Guys, Gordon Ramsay Burger, and Super Duper joining the fray.
However, there is still no absolute leader. For this reason, burger brands have been releasing new products in collaboration with famous chefs to capture consumers' tastes. Industry insiders explained, "Since consumer loyalty to burger brands is low, collaboration with famous chefs is an effective strategy to attract the interest of young people in their 20s and 30s."
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