What is the secret to selling out 250 tons of frozen kimbap made in Korea in less than a month in the US?

‘All Got’, a company specializing in frozen kimbap, maintains moisture with -45 degrees Celsius rapid freezing technology… Costco entry plan

“I went to buy ‘KIMBAP’ every day, but it was sold out. “I should have bought some when I had the chance.”

“I finally got my hands on frozen Korean gimbap. “I want to try it quickly.”

This is a review of frozen kimbap purchase posted on social networking services (SNS) such as TikTok and Instagram. Recently, Korean frozen gimbap has become so popular in the United States that it is causing a sell-out. In August, Korean TikTok sensation Sarah Ahn posted a video of herself and her mother tasting frozen kimbap sold at Trader Joe’s, an American grocery store chain. It became a hot topic, being viewed more than 11 million times in three weeks. They gathered together and ignited the American kimbap craze. The American NBC broadcast reported, “This TikTok video went viral and (frozen kimbap) was sold out across the country.” On social media, “It sold out quickly in August so I had to wait for it to be restocked.” There are reviews such as “The store I went to only allowed two items per person, so I barely bought them.”

‘KIMBAP’, frozen kimbap with fried tofu and burdock, caused a sell-out in the United States. [트레이더 조스 홈페이지]

The frozen gimbap sold at Trader Joe’s is supplied by ALLGOT, a food company that is somewhat unfamiliar to domestic consumers. The product name is ‘KIMBAP’, which is derived from the Korean pronunciation of kimbap. It went viral as a vegan kimbap by excluding meat, which is difficult to clear through customs, and adding burdock and tofu. All you have to do is microwave it for 2 minutes and 10 seconds, and the price is $3.99 (about 5,230 won) per string, which is one-third of the price of kimbap sold at local restaurants. Popular factors include the taste that remains similar to instant kimbap even after thawing, the vegan food that is easy to enjoy as a healthy meal, and the cost-effective price. Americans’ high interest in Korean culture such as K-pop and K-drama also contributed to the kimbap craze. The initial batch of 250 tons, delivered to 500 Trader Joe’s branches nationwide in August, was sold out in less than a month.

Established in Gumi, Gyeongsangbuk-do in June 2019, Upright is Korea’s largest single-item producer of frozen gimbap. While focusing on the development of convenience foods, we focused on the global popularity of K-food and promoted the globalization of kimbap. In April last year, we launched 5 types of ‘Baba Gimbap’ (vegetable, tuna, pork, buldak, and crazy buldak) using quick-freezing technology. entered the frozen kimbap market by launching it in Korea. Afterwards, they added vegan kimbap and tuna mayo kimbap to their lineup, and among the vegan kimbap, tofu burdock kimbap became popular in the U.S. this year, laying the foundation for full-scale exports. An official from Olsqi said, “Sales have grown more than five times compared to last year.”

CEO Lee Ho-jin, the founder of Olsto, ran Asung Construction and ASP, a construction materials company, before jumping into the food business. CEO Lee often bought kimbap for lunch, and if he bought 2 or 3 pieces, there would be leftovers, so he would microwave them and eat them. However, he felt that the texture was decreasing every time, so he remembered the tuna quick-freezing technology and tried frozen gimbap. After that, he discovered that quick freezing technology could maintain the taste and opened the door to a new business.

If you freeze gimbap at home, moisture may evaporate during freezing and the fibrous tissue of vegetables may become deformed. If you defrost this in the microwave, the rice will become mushy and the vegetables will shrink and lose their texture. Accordingly, in order to reduce the moisture loss of the kimbap filling ingredients as much as possible and maintain the taste, we developed a technology to quickly freeze kimbap at -45 degrees Celsius. When quick freezing, a moisture film is formed, minimizing moisture evaporation and maintaining moistness like instant kimbap. In addition, we developed and patented a special container for kimbap to ensure that heat is evenly distributed when defrosting in the microwave. The tray developed exclusively for kimbap is divided into three stages, providing excellent thermal conductivity, and the moisture layer at the bottom prevents the kimbap from bursting. We also paid attention to food safety management and received HACCP certification, a food safety management certification standard, in October last year, followed by FSSC22000 certification, a global food safety management system, and also acquired a design registration certificate for product packaging in preparation for export.

Allgot’s frozen kimbap, sold under the name ‘KIMBAP’ in the U.S. and Baba Gimbap in Korea, began full-scale marketing last year with comedian Hwang Je-seong as its exclusive model. However, the market response fell short of expectations. Then, in June of that year, we participated in the Seoul International Food Industry Fair held at KINTEX and met American buyers, opening the way for exports to the United States. Starting with 250 tons at the beginning of this year, an additional 500 tons were ordered in October, and additional orders are in place in November. In Korea, in addition to Baba Gimbap, Baba Tteokbokki and Baba Fish Cake Soup are being introduced, and the popular item Baba Gimbap is being sold in limited quantities at SSG.com, Allgot Naver Store, and Allgot Market Mall. Naver Store and Allgo Market Mall are sold out of kimbap, so it can only be purchased at the end of November or mid-December.

As the demand for frozen gimbap at home and abroad is increasing explosively, facilities are being expanded with the goal of completion in the first half of next year. Once the expansion is completed, production volume will increase more than 10 times compared to now, so domestic suppliers are also expected to expand. We are also pursuing frozen kimbap stores with Costco in the United States. An official from Ohlsok said, “We are continuing to talk with Costco executives and plan to successfully secure orders through video meetings and local visits in the future,” and added, “We are researching overseas markets with the goal of entering the entire U.S. and Europe next year.”

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〈This article
Weekly Donga

It was published in issue 1414〉

Source: Donga

Mark

Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.