7-Eleven Sells 200,000 Star-Chef Highballs in 3 Weeks, Sweeping No. 1 and No. 2 in Sales

Star-chef collaboration highballs with Hudukjuk and Yoon Nara launched on January 30
Foreign customer sales jump 4.4 times this year... Emerging as unique alcoholic beverages at K-convenience stores

Convenience store chain 7-Eleven announced that two types of highballs, launched sequentially from the end of last month in collaboration with popular chefs Hudukjuk and Yoon Nara, have surpassed cumulative sales of 200,000 cans within three weeks of release.

On the 22nd, 7-Eleven said that an analysis of sales data for “Hudukjuk Yuzu Kaoliang Highball” and “Yoonjumo Bokbunja Highball” from January 30, the launch date, to February 19 showed that they successfully settled in the market, ranking first and second in sales within the highball category.

These products were planned as part of the “gourmet marketing” strategy that 7-Eleven has put forward this year to strengthen product competitiveness. A key feature is that the chefs participated directly from the development stage and went through multiple tastings to achieve the optimal flavor. It is analyzed that consumers were drawn not merely by the use of a celebrity name, but by being able to conveniently enjoy high-quality highballs in canned form.

This performance shows that the landscape of the convenience store liquor market is changing. As the so-called “low-alcohol trend” has emerged among Millennials & Gen Z, shifting drinking from getting drunk to seeking enjoyment, canned highballs have established themselves as a core segment in convenience store alcohol sales. According to 7-Eleven, highball sales last year grew by more than 20% compared with the previous year. The number of highball products offered this year has also increased 2.3 times compared with 2023, making highballs a main product in convenience store walk-in coolers (W/C).

A notable change is the sharp increase in highball demand not only from local customers but also from foreign tourists visiting Korea. As convenience store highballs spread by word of mouth as a unique must-buy item when traveling in Korea, following K-food, sales have been rising rapidly.

According to 7-Eleven’s analysis of Alipay and UnionPay card purchase data, last year’s highball sales growth rate reached 2.7 times. This year as well (from January 1 to February 19), sales increased 4.4 times year-on-year, showing steep growth. It is interpreted that the unique package designs and the wide variety of flavors available only at Korean convenience stores have piqued foreign customers’ curiosity.

In line with this growing demand for highballs, 7-Eleven will run a promotion next month offering around 20 popular and unique alcoholic beverages, including the two star-chef highballs, at 12,000 won for 4 cans. Representative items include the “Highball in Love Series (Pineapple, Kiwi, Lemon, Grapefruit, Peach),” “Wine Ball (Red, White),” “Heart Wine Ball,” “Matcha Highball,” and “Black Circle Highball (Original, Lemon),” allowing customers to enjoy products with differentiated flavors and concepts.

Song Seungbae, MD in charge of the beverage and liquor team at 7-Eleven, said, “These new products, infused with the know-how of star chefs, have quickly achieved meaningful results by meeting the expectations of consumers who value taste and quality,” adding, “As convenience store highballs have become established as a drinking culture beyond a simple trend, we will continue to expand our differentiated liquor lineup.”