South Korean cosmetics brand Barenbliss said Friday that it has been working with top researchers to launch its new product line, “Meta Glow Series,” last month. Barenbliss has been operating its own research center, Barenbliss Skinlab, which has the necessary analytical facilities to test product safety and efficacy, the company said. The lab is headed by Yoon Myeong-seok, a professor of chemi...

Kim Ji-yeon, a 29-year-old elementary school teacher, stopped eating out during weekdays and started to eat lunch at a school canteen. Instead of going to cafes after lunch, Kim drinks instant coffee in her office. It has been two weeks since she has not spent any money during weekdays. “I first heard about the ‘no-spend challenge’ on Instagram, and thought it was a good way to save money. I was...

With the fast-growing appetite for low-calorie and healthy food sparked by the coronavirus pandemic, South Korean retailers have seen a spike in their “low-food” products. Low-food refers to low-calorie, gluten-free or non-alcohol food and beverage with fewer artificial additives. E-commerce platform WeMakePrice said on Tuesday that its zero-calorie soft drink sales surged 396 percent as of Jun...

South Korean food giant CJ CheilJedang will boost its overseas and domestic sales of plant-based meat products to 200 billion won ($151.9 million) by 2025, the company said on Monday. “The US and European countries including the UK and Germany, and Japan, which show increasing demand for Korean food and culture, will be our key target markets. We also plan to make forays into China, Singapore an...

The robot, which has two cabinets, can carry maximum of 17 kilograms and can deliver to customers located as the terminal‘s farthest gate -- 250 meters away from the cafes and bakeries. In preparation of any accidents, the robot has received KC certification and has taken out an insurance covering as much as 100 million won ($75,500). The service will be available from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Baemin’...

Retail giants Lotte and Shinsegae are set to enter the whiskey business by constructing distilleries on Jeju Island, home to some of Korea’s best-quality water. Lotte Chilsung Beverage, Lotte Group’s beverage arm, said Friday that it has recently received the green light from Jeju to change a former tangerine farm into whisky distillery. “After getting advice from experts, we picked Jeju Island...

Ever wondered how fried chicken would pair up with mint and chocolate? For those who have, the South Korean unit of fried chicken chain KFC has released a mint chocolate-flavored dipping sauce. The sauce, which is part of a seasonal collaboration with local food delivery app Baemin, will be available until Aug. 8 at locations across the country, excluding a select few. The mixture of “rich and...

SPC Group chairman Hur Young-in attended a global business event held by the French government as the only Korean entrepreneur to have participated in the event twice, the food company said Tuesday The one-day event, called Choose France, invites overseas companies to accelerate their investment in the second-largest economy in Europe. The government-led event has been held since 2018. On Monda...

CU, another Korean convenience store chain, recently announced the opening of its 100th convenience store in Perak, northwestern Malaysia. Its first store opened in Kuala Lumpur last year. The 198-square-meter store aims to become a landmark in the local community, according to the company. The chain operator originally aimed to open 50 branches in a year, but ultimately doubled that number. As ...

Lotte, Shinsegae and Hyundai, the three retail giants in South Korea, are scrambling to be the first to build a new mega shopping complex in the southwestern city of Gwangju, one of the key campaign pledges of President Yoon Suk-yeol that is aimed at facilitating the local economy. Hyundai Department Store on Wednesday announced that it is in talks with Humans Holdings, a local real estate devel...

Not just girls and guys next door, influencers emerge as new marketing superpower leading fast-changing retail trend

Convenience store owners are pushing to impose late-night surcharges on items to offset the expected rise in labor costs from next year’s legal minimum wage increase. In a meeting held Tuesday, the National Convenience Store Franchise Association, which represents store owners, decided to officially demand that convenience store franchises support the idea. Under the proposal, owners would impo...

South Korean convenience stores are testing their service accessibility to remote areas by deploying drones for delivery use to enhance customer experience. Local convenience store chain CU said Wednesday that it has launched a drone delivery service for the first time at CU’s Yeongwol Gongju branch in Gangwon Province. The delivery drone, which weighs 17 kilograms and measures 70 centimeters i...

Hangover drinks are a multi-billion won industry, despite lacking medical backing

Vietnam outpaced South Korea in terms of instant noodle consumption per capita, on the Southeast Asian country’s growing purchasing power and economic growth rate, data showed Thursday. According to Nongshim, a leading ramyeon maker in South Korea, the average Vietnamese eats about 87 servings a year while the average South Korean has 73 servings, citing 2021 data from the World Instant Noodles ...