According to Gyeongbuk Province's analysis of the top-selling companies on Saiso, there were 42 businesses with sales exceeding 100 million KRW in the first half of the year. These included 11 fruit and vegetable companies, 9 grain companies, 8 livestock product companies, 6 processed food companies, 3 seafood companies, 3 eco-friendly agricultural product companies, and 2 forest product companies. This demonstrates that Saiso has firmly established itself as a specialty shopping mall for agricultural products, recognized by both consumers and participating businesses.
The company with the highest sales in the first half was Nongbu Plus, a sesame oil and perilla oil manufacturer, which recorded 1.34 billion KRW. Following were Nongbuchanggo, also specializing in sesame and perilla oil (820 million KRW), Sangju Aram Dried Persimmon Farm (810 million KRW), Sangju Dried Persimmon Distribution Cooperative (690 million KRW), Jisam Distribution specializing in dried seafood (560 million KRW), Yeongju Punggi Apple (540 million KRW), Seunghye Livestock specializing in Korean beef (540 million KRW), Yeomulge specializing in Dakgalbi (410 million KRW), Yeongju Livestock Cooperative (370 million KRW), and The Road to the East Sea specializing in fish sauce (370 million KRW), all making it into the top 10.
Gyeongbuk Province noted that, due to the nature of agricultural products, more than 65% of Saiso's annual sales are concentrated in the second half of the year. With the current sales growth rate at 40%, the number of businesses achieving annual sales of over 100 million KRW is expected to increase significantly from 82 last year to over 100 this year, possibly even exceeding 120.
Nongbu Plus, which ranked first in sales for the first half, is an agricultural corporation based in Chilgok that has specialized in cold-pressed sesame and perilla oil since 2016. The company joined Saiso in 2017, shortly after its establishment, gradually expanding its presence. During the COVID-19 period, its sales on Saiso surged, allowing the company to grow in size. Last year, Nongbu Plus also recorded the highest annual sales on Saiso, with 2.3 billion KRW.
Lee Urak (46), CEO of Nongbu Plus, who topped the sales ranking, stated, "When our sales were sluggish after starting the business, joining Saiso brought us popularity and a significant increase in sales. Without Saiso, which is optimized for agri-food startups, Nongbu Plus would not exist today," expressing repeated gratitude to the Saiso management team.
Additionally, Yeomulge, a company producing Dakgalbi in Mungyeong, stood out by ranking high in sales with affordable products intended for personal consumption, unlike most other top-selling companies that produce high-priced products often used as gifts as well as for personal use.
Although Yeomulge ranked eighth in sales, it took first place in the number of orders, making it the most popular company among Saiso consumers.
Kim Shinil (55), CEO of Yeomulge, stated, "Seventy percent of our sales come from Saiso. Saiso and we are one, and for us, Saiso is everything. Simply put, we soared thanks to Saiso," expressing strong praise for the platform.
Kim Juryoung, Director of Agricultural and Livestock Distribution at Gyeongbuk Province, explained, "The greatest strength of Saiso is its direct transaction structure, which reduces distribution stages." He added, "We will continue to leverage Saiso's strengths to provide stable sales channels for producers and deliver fresh, high-quality products to consumers at reasonable prices."
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