Jay Park, Dokdo, Tokki Soju... Convenience Store Premium Soju War

GS25 Expands to 21 Varieties This Year
Elemental Soju Spirit Sales Begin in July

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Chun-han] As ‘Park Jae-beom Soju’ becomes so popular among the MZ generation (Millennials + Generation Z) that it is experiencing a shortage, a premium (distilled) soju war is breaking out in convenience stores. Each company is rushing to introduce popular premium soju to secure market dominance.

According to GS25 on the 12th, premium soju sales increased by 40.5% from the same period last year between the 1st and 10th of this month. During the same period, CU saw a sharp increase of 66.4%. The domestic premium soju market size was only 40 billion KRW three years ago, but it is expected to exceed 70 billion KRW this year.

GS25 increased its premium soju products from 7 types last year to 21 types this year. In particular, starting in July, it will sell One Spirits’ new product, Wonsoju Spirit, at stores nationwide. This product is a high-end soju made by fermenting and distilling Toto-mi rice from Wonju, Gangwon Province, and is a follow-up product to Wonsoju, which previously caused an open-run with limited quantities.

CU sells four types of premium soju including Dokdo Soju, Hwayo, Ilpum Jinro, and Tokki Soju. Tokki Soju began sales in March through the CU membership application PocketCU and plans to be available at stores nationwide starting next month. Tokki Soju is a Korean-style soju manufactured by the American brand Hill and has gained word-of-mouth on social media after being sold at a Korean restaurant in Brooklyn, New York.

Seven Eleven introduced Tokki Soju and Lim Chang-jung Misugaru Honey Makgeolli this month, and plans to additionally launch Lim Chang-jung Soju (Soju Hanjan) in July. Emart24 is currently selling three types of premium soju, and liquor specialty stores handle eight types of products.

A convenience store industry official said, "As home drinking and solo drinking cultures become everyday life, the number of customers wanting to enjoy a wider variety of alcoholic beverages is increasing," adding, "We plan to continuously introduce differentiated alcoholic beverage products for customers who prefer unique experiences."

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