Wine Craze Among 'Jipkokjok' Drives Convenience Store and Mart Sales Surge

GS25 Sells 10,000 Bottles of Beaujolais Nouveau in Pre-Order, Expected to Sell Out Early
Lotte Mart Sees Purchase Increase Comparable to Beer... Product Range Doubled

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Hye-seon] As people spend more time at home, the popularity of alcoholic beverages has changed significantly. While beer and soju consumption has decreased, wine is experiencing a boom. In particular, distributors have introduced wines that are surprisingly affordable yet delicious, making them popular items at convenience stores and supermarkets.

On the 19th, GS25 announced that the pre-orders for Albert Bichot Beaujolais Nouveau through its liquor smart order system Wine25 Plus exceeded 10,000 bottles. This accounted for 30% of the total stock (30,000 bottles) sold through reservations. Albert Bichot Beaujolais Nouveau is the first wine of 2020 produced by Albert Bichot, one of the three major wineries in the Burgundy region of France, using Gamay grapes harvested in early September and aged for 4 to 6 weeks. The 'Beaujolais Nouveau Plate Set,' worth about 50,000 won and consisting of two bottles of Beaujolais Nouveau and one wooden plate, sold out on the first day of pre-order sales. Beaujolais Nouveau is released simultaneously worldwide on the third Thursday of November every year. Considering that GS25 usually sells about 5,000 to 10,000 bottles of Beaujolais Nouveau on the first day of release, including smart order pre-orders, half of the stock prepared by GS25 is sold out early in the release period.

Kim Cheon-ju, head of the Convenience Store Operations MD Team at GS Retail, explained, "Usually, Beaujolais Nouveau sales continue through the year-end home party season, but this year, early sell-out is expected."

Emart24 also reported that sales of the 'Wine of the Month' products from January to October surpassed 100,000 bottles. The Wine of the Month is a curation service started in January this year, where buyers carefully select wines suitable for each month and offer them at reasonable prices. Emart24 increased the number of liquor-specialized stores (specialized sections within convenience stores displaying and selling wine, whiskey, etc.) to 2,400 since launching them in February. As a result, wine sales this year nearly doubled compared to the same period last year.

Wine consumption is also rapidly increasing in large supermarkets. Lotte Mart announced that wine sales from January to October grew by 49.1% compared to the same period last year. The average monthly wine purchase frequency has become similar to that of beer purchases, which is noteworthy. Especially, the proportion of customers in their 20s and 30s during this period was 35.1%, indicating high growth potential. The number of first-time wine buyers also increased. From July to October, the proportion of new customers purchasing wine for the first time at Lotte Mart, based on Lotte Members data, was 40.2%, up 5.2% from the previous year. The launch of ultra-low-priced wine 'Real Fuente' priced at 3,900 won in June is analyzed to have helped expand the market. At Emart as well, wine surpassed instant coffee and snacks to enter the top 10 in annual sales rankings this year.

Lotte Mart plans to strengthen its product lineup to capture wine demand. First, it will more than double the number of products offered in stores compared to before. The share of mid-to-high-priced wines, which were not widely handled in large supermarkets, will increase from 15% to 26% to meet the demands of diverse wine consumers. To allow customers to naturally encounter wine in daily life, related displays and curation activities will also be expanded. Kits composed of prepared foods and wine are scheduled to be released next month.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.