CU Partners with Master Baker Seokwon Lee for 'Bakehouse 405' Collaboration

Differentiating In-House Bakery Brand 'Bakehouse 405'
Four Breads Collaborated with Master Baker Seokwon Lee to Launch Sequentially Starting January 28

The 'Bakehouse 405' bread series launched by CU in collaboration with master baker Seokwon Lee. CU

CU, operated by BGF Retail, is partnering with Seokwon Lee, the 17th Master Baker of Korea, to further differentiate its in-house bakery brand, 'Bakehouse 405.'

On January 27, CU announced that it will sequentially launch four high-quality bakery and dessert products featuring Seokwon Lee's expertise, starting from January 28.

Seokwon Lee is a master baker with 35 years of experience, who previously served as the youngest executive chef at Seongsimdang in Daejeon and later gained fame as the owner of 'La Contre,' a renowned bakery in Ulsan and Gyeongju. In 2024, he was selected as the youngest 17th Master Baker of Korea.

The 'Bakehouse 405 Master Red Bean Bread' (2,300 won) is a premium red bean bread filled with whole red beans, which is Seokwon Lee's signature. It features a soft bread crust and contains natural probiotics to aid digestion, making it a nutritious choice as well.

Next month, CU will also launch the 'Bakehouse 405 Master Castella Sandwich' (3,300 won), a hearty snack bread with red bean cream and strawberry jam sandwiched between castella bread topped with soboro crumble.

CU is also preparing to release new products that combine Seokwon Lee’s expertise with the popular 'Yonsei Milk Fresh Cream Bread Series,' which has sold more than 85 million units cumulatively.

The 'Yonsei Milk Master Red Bean Maritozzo' (4,300 won) is filled with fresh cream with a higher dairy content for a richer, smoother taste, and features the texture of whole red beans. The 'Yonsei Milk Master Melon Cream Bread' (3,500 won) is a dessert bread with sweet melon cream sandwiched between soft bread, maximizing the flavor and aroma of melon.

Jo Junhyeong, Head of Snack Foods at BGF Retail, stated, "As demand for value-for-money bread continues to rise amid high inflation, this collaboration with Master Baker Seokwon Lee will further enhance customer satisfaction. Going forward, CU will continue to strengthen its product competitiveness not only through price but also by offering differentiated quality unique to CU."

Since its launch in August 2023, CU’s Bakehouse 405 has surpassed cumulative sales of 27 million units, driven by its strong value-for-money pricing in the 1,000 to 3,000 won range. Thanks to this popularity, CU's year-on-year bread sales increased by 28.3% in 2023, 33% in 2024, and 23.1% in 2025.

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