"Kkokkalcorn Masong Corn Flavor Only at Our Stores"... Spinoff Products Drive Convenience Store Sales

A Series of Hit Differentiated New Products from Four Major Convenience Store Chains

Shorter Product Trend Cycles

Data and Product Planning Capabilities Drive Competitiveness in Convenience Stores

The convenience store industry is accelerating its competition for "differentiated products," ranging from collaborations with manufacturers and popular restaurants to sourcing overseas bestsellers. The strategy is to attract consumers to stores with products that cannot be found in other retail channels. As soon as these products are launched, there have been consecutive cases where they overtake existing bestsellers or sell hundreds of thousands of units.

According to the industry on September 8, the "Kkokkalcorn Masong Corn Flavor," introduced last month by GS25, a convenience store operated by GS Retail, sold 400,000 units in one month, topping the snack sales chart. This is more than three times the sales of the existing Kkokkalcorn. With surging demand, supply is now limited to only one box per store per week, creating a scarcity phenomenon. During the same period, "Chunsik's Kkobuk Chip Sweet Potato Tanghulu Flavor" also sold 300,000 units.

GS25 is focusing on a "flavor extension" strategy—adding new flavors to popular products—and a "spinoff" strategy, expanding existing brands with new products. This approach combines the brand awareness of manufacturers with the sales data and product planning expertise that convenience stores possess, in order to create exclusive products.

A model is posing at GS25 holding Chunsik's Kkobuk Chip Sweet Potato Tanghulu flavor and Kkokkalcorn Magical Corn flavor. GS25

CU, operated by BGF Retail, has focused on ramen and experiential products. The differentiated ramen "Cheat Sheet" series has sold a total of 400,000 units. That is about 9,500 units per day, or one every nine seconds—the fastest-selling product among CU's differentiated ramen lines. "Breaking Yonsei Heart Fresh Cream Bread," launched last April, surpassed 1.1 million units in just three months. By allowing consumers to break the chocolate coating themselves, it became a sensation on social media platforms.

Seven-Eleven is strengthening its global sourcing efforts. Four types of desserts imported from Japan have surpassed 4 million in cumulative sales. Among them, "Ohayo Brulee Milk," launched on July 23, sold 350,000 units in just 40 days. "Yoon Namno Bokdamju," a collaboration with Chef Yoon Namno, also rose to the number one spot in traditional liquor sales just a week after launch and surpassed 100,000 units sold in about a month.

CU Cheat Sheet Series. BGF Retail

Emart24 is betting on ramen developed in collaboration with popular restaurants. "Daebakgak Fire-Flavored Jjamppong Ramen," created with the Ilsan Chinese restaurant Daebakgak, has ranked second in cup noodle sales after Yugyejang since its launch. "Ice Sweet Potato Matang," developed with the concept of traditional root crops, rose to number one among popular search terms on both the Emart24 App and food delivery apps within just 10 days of its release. Sales in the past three days have increased by 3.2 times compared to the first three days after launch.

The motivation behind convenience stores investing heavily in differentiated products is the realization that it has become difficult to stand out from competitors based solely on the number of locations or store sites. Products from general manufacturers can be bought at any convenience store, but exclusive products give consumers a reason to choose a specific store. In addition, one popular product can drive additional sales of other items, thus serving as a traffic generator that boosts store revenue.

'Yoon Namno Bokdamju' in collaboration with 7-Eleven Chef Yoon Namno. 7-Eleven

The way differentiated products are developed is also changing. In the past, the focus was on low-priced private label (PB) products or collaborations with celebrities. Recently, the emphasis has shifted to reimagining already proven brands and products. Examples include adding new flavors to highly recognizable products such as Kkokkalcorn or Kkobuk Chip, turning popular restaurant menu items into ramen, and exclusively introducing hit overseas products into the domestic market. This strategy makes it easier for consumers to try new products while securing their sense of rarity, compared to developing entirely new items.

The shortening of product life cycles is also increasing this competition. When a specific product becomes a social media trend, searches and purchases spike over a short period, and attention swiftly shifts to the next new item. For convenience store operators, the ability to quickly launch buzzworthy new products—rather than focusing solely on bestsellers with long lifespans—has itself become a competitive strength.

Five differentiated products of Emart24's traditional root crops. Emart24

An industry official stated, "As the product trend cycle shortens, the ability to respond rapidly to market changes through partnerships with external partners such as manufacturers and restaurant brands is becoming increasingly important. Ultimately, it will be the merchandising (MD) capability to first identify customer demand based on consumer data and continuously connect this to hit products that determines the competitive edge of a convenience store headquarters."

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