"From Namul to Modeumjeon"... Convenience Stores Targeting 'Honchu-jok' with Ready-to-Eat Meals

"Holiday Lunchbox Sales Grow by Over 20% Annually"

Convenience store chains have introduced holiday ready meals targeting the ‘Honchujok,’ those spending Chuseok alone at home.

The model is tasting a holiday lunchbox at CU.
[Photo by BGF Retail]

According to the convenience store industry on the 28th, GS25's Chuseok lunchbox sales last year increased by 25.8% compared to the previous year. During the same period, CU recorded a 13.4% increase, and 7-Eleven saw a 50% growth, all showing double-digit growth rates. Lunchboxes operated exclusively during the holiday period have been recording higher growth rates every year. A GS25 official said, “Lunchbox sales during the Lunar New Year and Chuseok over the past three years have consistently grown by about 20% annually,” adding, “The holiday lunchboxes operated exclusively during last year’s Chuseok showed a growth rate twice as large.”

GS25 introduced the ‘Eonamsunsaeng Kkwari Jjimdak Lunchbox,’ utilizing the Kkwari Jjimdak (braised chicken with Kkwari berries) that actor Ryu Soo-young won the final victory with on this year’s ‘New Release Pyeonstorang’ broadcast. The lunchbox consists of Kkwari Jjimdak, assorted jeon (Korean pancakes), radish salad, spinach namul, white rice, and fried egg, creating a rich holiday table atmosphere, according to the company.

CU prepared the ‘Grilled Pork Set Lunchbox’ and the ‘Solo Assorted Jeon Lunchbox.’ The Grilled Pork Set Lunchbox contains grilled pork from the Berkshire K breed and various jeon and side dishes. Berkshire K is a high-quality domestic pork breed known for its tender meat that can even be eaten as shabu-shabu, with a rich flavor due to its high unsaturated fatty acid content. The Solo Assorted Jeon Lunchbox is a single dish composed of nine different types of jeon, including kimchi jeon, potato jeon, mung bean jeon, donggeurangttaeng (Korean meat patties), chili fritters, squid fritters, and assorted seafood meatballs, allowing individuals to enjoy a plentiful holiday meal alone.

CU also introduced holiday foods that make it easy to prepare ancestral rites dishes this year. These include four ready-made products: one meal-sized japchae (3,900 won), pollack jeon (8,500 won), perilla leaf jeon (10,900 won), and omisanjeok (9,900 won), as well as three ingredient sets: pollack meat, assorted seafood, and lobster shrimp. All these products are frozen ready meals, making them easy to store and convenient to cook and eat whenever needed.

To contribute to stabilizing holiday prices, promotional events are also being held. GS25 is running a promotion until the end of this month where all customers who purchase the Eonamsunsaeng Kkwari Jjimdak Lunchbox receive a free cup ramen (Paldo Dosirak). CU is conducting a 1+1 event until the 30th of this month for consumers who purchase the four ready-made ancestral rite dishes. When buying the four products as 1+1, customers can purchase a total of eight items for 33,200 won. Considering that one serving is 300g, this amounts to about nine servings.

A convenience store industry official said, “Convenience stores will serve as a purchasing channel where consumers spending Chuseok alone, as well as those who face closed restaurants, marts, and markets during the holiday, can buy cost-effective holiday foods at reasonable prices.”

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