Why Did Lee Cheol-woo, Governor of Gyeongbuk, Visit the Birthplace of Whiskey?

"Andong Soju, Aiming to Grow into a Global Brand"

Visit to Scotland, Promoting Export of Gyeongbuk Traditional Liquor

The whiskey craze sweeping across South Korea is showing no signs of slowing down.

According to last year's import statistics from the Korea Customs Service, the annual import volume of whiskey increased by approximately 72.6% compared to the previous year. Especially influenced by COVID-19, the younger generation in their 20s and 30s prefers whiskey, which offers rarity and a unique taste and aroma, emerging as the main consumers. The industry is busy devising differentiation strategies in response.

Amid this market situation, Gyeongbuk Province, the birthplace of Korea's distilled traditional liquor, has taken the lead in turning regional traditional liquors into valuable resources with the goal of global branding of 'Andong Soju.'

On the 23rd, Gyeongbuk Province announced on the 26th that Governor Lee Cheol-woo and his delegation visited Scotland, which has the highest recognition and history among whiskey-producing countries, to widely promote local traditional liquors worldwide and lay the groundwork for growing them into global brands like whiskey.

Lee Cheol-woo, Governor of Gyeongbuk Province (left in the photo), is meeting John Cow, Mayor of Moray County in Scotland, the birthplace of whiskey, and presenting a commemorative plaque.

The governor visited Moray County, one of the whiskey industry hubs where more than 50 Scotch whisky distilleries are concentrated, and held a meeting with Mayor John Cowe.

At this meeting, they introduced Gyeongbuk's traditional liquors and high-quality cultural heritage, exchanging friendly opinions on cooperation plans for joint promotion and sales of traditional liquors, academic exchanges, and cultural tourism exchanges between the two regions.

Additionally, together with members of the Gyeongbuk Traditional Liquor Association, composed of representatives from manufacturers including Andong Soju, they visited Forsyths, a globally renowned alcohol distillation equipment manufacturer, and whiskey producers Glen Moray, Benromach, and Broody Hen Whisky. They compared the manufacturing processes of Andong Soju and whiskey, examined production facility equipment, and discussed mutual exchange plans with company officials.

Gyeongbuk Province expects that since Korea's traditional liquors have already been internationally recognized for their excellent technology at international liquor competitions, this achievement will serve as a catalyst for the globalization of regional traditional liquors.

On the day, Governor Lee Cheol-woo said, "I hope this visit to Scotland will be an opportunity to widely promote Andong Soju internationally and open the door to exports into the global market," adding, "I hope the precious relationships formed will maintain continuous networks and develop cooperative exchange relations."

The following day, on the 24th, the delegation visited the Scotch Whisky Association (Chairman Mark Kent) located in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland and the birthplace of whiskey, to meet with local officials.

At the meeting with the Scotch Whisky Association (SWA), the delegation engaged in various Q&A sessions to learn the know-how of how whiskey overcame the strong regional characteristics of traditional liquors and grew into a global brand through differentiated branding.

Lee Cheol-woo, Governor of Gyeongbuk, and his entourage are touring a whiskey factory.

At the birthplace of Scotch whisky, Governor Lee Cheol-woo expressed gratitude, saying, "This precious opportunity for Korean and British distillers to meet and learn the know-how behind the global growth of British whiskey was invaluable," and added, "I hope that through continued mutual exchanges, Andong Soju will become a representative global liquor that captivates the tastes and sentiments of people worldwide."

Representatives of local manufacturers, including Andong Soju, agreed to jointly establish policies with Gyeongbuk Province for the globalization of traditional liquors and to cooperate in improving quality and strengthening domestic and international marketing going forward.

Governor Lee requested the Scotch Whisky Association's interest in the local entry of Gyeongbuk traditional liquors into the UK market and promised administrative support necessary for exchange activities between the two countries' associations for win-win cooperation such as private-led technical training and academic exchanges.

On the morning of the 25th, Governor Lee and his delegation continued their schedule by visiting 'Korea Food' located in New Malden, UK, and signing a business agreement to expand exports of Gyeongbuk agricultural and food products to the UK.

The signing ceremony was attended by Governor Lee Cheol-woo, Park Young-seo, Vice Chairman of the Gyeongbuk Provincial Council, Seo Byung-soo, CEO of Korea Mart, Park Chan-kwan, Chairman of the Gyeongbuk Traditional Liquor Association and members, and members of the Korean community in the UK, agreeing to closely cooperate to expand exports of Gyeongbuk agricultural and food products.

In the afternoon, they also visited the UK H Mart and signed a business agreement to expand exports of Gyeongbuk agricultural and food products to the UK with UK H Mart.

At the 2023 K-Gyeongbuk Food Promotion held at UK H Mart, they showcased Andong Soju, a traditional Korean liquor rarely encountered abroad, to UK consumers, providing an opportunity to promote the excellence of Gyeongbuk traditional liquors, as well as promoting the appeal of Gyeongbuk agricultural products such as Hangwa (traditional Korean sweets) and dried persimmons.

Through this business agreement among Gyeongbuk Province and leading UK distributors Korea Food and UK H Mart, they agreed to mutually cooperate in discovering promising export items produced in Gyeongbuk and promoting and expanding sales using online and offline distribution networks to pioneer the UK market.

Through this, Gyeongbuk Province plans to diversify its overseas export markets beyond its existing main markets of the United States, Japan, and China by using the UK as a foothold to pioneer the advanced European market and expand overseas online and offline distribution channels.

They also plan to aggressively explore the global market for Gyeongbuk agricultural and food products by discovering promising export items and expanding participation in international food fairs.

Governor Lee Cheol-woo said, "The UK is a major European country, and through this promotion event, we have established a foothold for entry into the European market. Also, we specially prepared Andong Soju, which maintains and preserves traditional methods in the region, to present to UK consumers," adding, "Following last year's first-ever 1 trillion won export milestone for agricultural and food products, I will continue to actively promote Gyeongbuk's excellent agricultural and food products to consumers worldwide."

During this 3-night, 4-day visit to the UK, six company representatives who are members of the Gyeongbuk Traditional Liquor Association (Chairman Park Chan-kwan) accompanied the delegation, seeking ways to advance Korean traditional liquors locally and expand mutual exchanges with the Scotch Whisky Association.

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