South Korea

In 2023, air care witnessed moderate single-digit growth in current value terms, due to the shifting perspective of air care as a component of self-care, particularly among the younger generations. This signifies a departure from viewing air care…

Air treatment products in South Korea is exhibiting a mixed performance. Cooling appliances are mostly experiencing positive demand due to global warming and exceedingly hot summers in the country, whereas air purifiers and humidifiers are…

Air Premier is an airline which initially launched in 2017. Unlike full service and low cost carriers, Air Premier is positioned as a "hybrid airline". Full service carriers are known to offer various airfares, but tend to be perceived as premium,…

In 2023, alcoholic drinks in South Korea turned to slight total volume decline. The industry navigated a complex landscape marked by high expectations for post-pandemic recovery, which was somewhat dampened by significant consumer cost burden due to…

From 2022, alcoholic drinks companies in South Korea were required to post nutritional information, including calorie content, on the labels of their products in accordance with legislation introduced by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. As a…

Despite the overall waning impact of the pandemic in South Korea, simultaneous new outbreaks of COVID-19, influenza, and the common cold (referred to as a “tripledemic” in the country) are leading to a sharp increase in the number of consumers…

As local consumers continue to purchase apparel in 2023, sales of fashionable accessories such as belts, scarves, hats/caps and ties are also increasing. Therefore, these types of accessories continue to post positive retail volume and current value…

Apparel and footwear is posting positive but slower current value and retail volume growth in 2023 compared to the previous year, as many consumers’ needs/wants for new apparel and footwear have been largely fulfilled following the lifting of social…

Outlet numbers in apparel and footwear specialists in South Korea remained fairly static in 2023, after several years of decline. Meanwhile, although sales failed to return to anywhere near the pre-pandemic level in current value terms, they…

Appliances and electronics specialists maintained its long-standing decline in outlet numbers in South Korea in 2023, and although it returned to growth in current value terms, this only made a small dent in the losses experienced since 2019. The…

Sales of Asian speciality drinks in South Korea continue to grow in 2022 as consumers look for perceived healthier drink options. In addition to the longer-term pursuit of healthier lifestyles, the pandemic encouraged local consumers to seek clear…

In the wake of inflationary pressures, there has been a surprising reluctance amongst individuals to engage in activities outside the home, including dining out, which contributed to lower than expected growth in consumer foodservice in 2023. This…

Despite the low birth rate in South Korea, current value growth was maintained in baby and child-specific products in 2023. Parents are becoming increasingly savvy in terms of purchasing products that suit their children, regardless of whether they…

Baby food is set to continue to exhibit growth in retail current value terms in South Korea in 2023, with some variations observed at the category level. This increase in value sales can be attributed to inflation-induced p rice rises, as when…

Total baby food packaging volumes continued to rise in South Korea in 2023. In this year, plastic pouches experienced growth in packaging volumes in baby food, as these offer exceptional convenience for parents, providing a lightweight, portable, and…

In early 2023, as the South Korean government fully lifted COVID-19-related restrictions and entered the endemic era, international travel fully reopened. As consumer spending has largely shifted to international travel, the growth of bags,…

Heightened consumer interest in health continues to be a prominent trend following the pandemic in South Korea. It has played a pivotal role in shaping the current baking trend of reducing sugar and oil content, while emphasising natural fermentation…

Bath and shower maintained solid current value growth in South Korea in 2023, although the rate of increase slowed compared with the peak seen over 2020-2022. Clean beauty, which emphasises gentle and natural ingredients, is highly favoured by…

Beauty and personal care maintained solid current value growth in South Korea in 2023. Mass beauty and personal care outpaced the growth rate of premium beauty and personal care in this year, although both saw growth. The upward standardisation of…

South Korea relaxed the bulk of its COVID-19 restrictions in April-May 2022, triggering a return to pre-pandemic out-of-home lifestyles. This, in turn, helped drive volume sales in beauty and personal care categories that consumers use when going…

Despite expectations that the endemic phase of the pandemic would herald a second year of dynamic revival for the on-trade, and a flourishing year for total volume sales of beer in 2023, beer in South Korea experienced stagnation, with declines seen…

In 2023, bleach experienced another year of moderate volume and current value growth, driven by factors such as inflation and heightened awareness of hygiene and cleanliness in the post-pandemic era. Demand for disinfectant bleach remains steady in…

Two key players in South Korea's online travel agencies are Yeogi Eottae and Yanolja, which both began as OTAs focused on lodging in the country. However, they are continuously expanding their businesses beyond this sector to include different travel…

Demand for bottled water in South Korea is set to continue to rise in volume terms both off-trade and on-trade in 2023. Throughout the pandemic, buying bottled water for home consumption became a habit. Consumers who had previously purchased bottled…

While retail volume sales of both children's breakfast cereals and family breakfast cereals continue to decline in 2023 due to greater mobility following the easing of restrictions in South Korea, demand remains above pre-pandemic levels. Players in…

In 2023, overall butter and spreads in South Korea is expected to continue to show positive growth in retail current value terms, although the growth rates vary across different categories. While inflation has contributed to the overall sales…

Specialist coffee and tea shops is a mature category in South Korea, but continued to show dynamic growth in 2023. Previously, players in specialist coffee shops changed high unit prices, but advances in coffee machines led to standardisation of…

Overall carbonates is set to see dynamic off-trade volume growth in 2023. However, concerns about the dangers of the overconsumption of sugar are driving consumers towards healthier variants. Increasing numbers of consumers are concerned about the…

Cat food is expected to maintain strong growth in South Korea in 2024, with a high single-digit current value increase, continuing the trend observed in 2023. However, the increases in these two years were lower than the steady double-digit growth…

In 2023, cheese in South Korea is expected to continue to thrive in retail current value terms, building on the positive growth observed in the previous year. However, a notable opposite trend has emerged in volume terms, as all cheese categories…

In 2022, the total fertility rate in South Korea reached a new low of 0.78, with the number of newborns also dropping below 250,000 for the first time. The ongoing decline of new births in the country is resulting in falling retail volume sales for…

Chocolate confectionery in South Korea is expected to see low retail current value growth in 2024, along with marginal retail volume decline. Mixed developments are being seen in 2024, influenced by broader market trends and changing consumer…

Retail volume and current value sales of cigarettes declined in 2023, maintaining the trend seen in 2022. Nevertheless, cigarettes still constitute a large proportion of sales in the overall tobacco industry. Whilst cigarettes experienced a negative…

Cigars and cigarillos in South Korea has shown significant increases in retail volume sales for four consecutive years, with double-digit growth seen in 2023. One of the main drivers behind the growth in consumption of cigars and cigarillos is a…

Instant coffee has been experiencing continuous retail current value declines, which are set to continue in 2023. The first factor contributing to this decline is the increasing trend of “home café”, or creating café-like experiences at home, whereby…

Colour cosmetics maintained dynamic current value growth in South Korea in 2023, with both premium and mass colour cosmetics experiencing healthy growth, with high single-digit increases. Mass colour cosmetics grew slightly faster than premium,…

Retail and business volume sales of computers and peripherals declined significantly in 2022, and this trend is expected to continue in 2023. One of the key factors contributing to decline is that the replacement cycle was advanced during the peak of…

For a second year, overall concentrates is set to see little movement in off-trade volume sales, with just a slight decline expected, as marginal growth for powder concentrates is offset by slight decline for liquid concentrates. Liquid concentrates…

Total confectionery packaging volumes increased in South Korea in 2023, seeing a gradual recovery after sales declined during the pandemic. Flexible packaging remained the dominant pack type in chocolate confectionery in 2023, as this offers…

Retail volume sales of major appliances are declining in 2023, albeit by a slower rate compared to 2022, attributed to inflation and consumers’ constrained budgets. During the pandemic, demand for many consumer appliances experienced an unprecedented…

One of the most significant global issues concerning consumer credit is BNPL (Buy Now Pay Later) services, which enable consumers without sufficient funds to make an immediate purchase, locally known as “thin filers”, to obtain goods and pay at a…

With the full lifting of COVID-19-related social distancing measures through 2022 and 2023, and consumers therefore drastically reducing the amount of time spent at home, the retail volume growth rate of overall consumer electronics in South Korea…

In 2023, the significant growth in sales of drive-through outlets was noteworthy. This method of fulfilment showed a triple-digit growth rate during COVID-19 in 2020, and still sustained double-digit current value growth in 2023. From a corporate…

Despite optimistic expectations of rapid recovery in consumer consumption following the COVID-19 pandemic, transaction growth in overall consumer foodservice in South Korea experienced a slowdown in 2023, exacerbated by prolonged inflation. The…

The self-medication trend is growing in South Korea, supporting further sales growth for analgesics, and cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies, especially since the prevalence of the “tripledemic” in the country, consisting of COVID-19,…

Gross consumer lending’s growth is continuing to outperform outstanding balance, driven by card lending, as local consumers spend more with the reopening of society and cross-border travel. However, outstanding balance on card lending (encompassing…

Contact lenses in South Korea is set to maintain solid but slower current value growth in 2024. Multifocal lenses are gaining significant popularity in the country, largely driven by the ageing population. As the demographic shift towards an older…

Convenience retailers maintained dynamic growth in current value terms and in terms of outlet numbers in South Korea in 2023. The number of convenience retailers surpassed 50,000 in 2021, and this figure increased to nearly 60,000 in 2023. The…

There have been surges in raw material prices for cooking ingredients and meals in South Korea, primarily attributed to climate change and geopolitical issues, which are further pushing up the average unit price. This has created an upward trajectory…

Like analgesics, sales of cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies continue to rise, benefiting from the “tripledemic” of rising COVID-19 cases, the stronger return of influenza due to greater mobility outside of the home and contact with others,…