"Convenience Store Holiday Meals Replace Traditional Feast... Four Major Chains Target 'Honmyeongjok' for Chuseok"

Holiday Ready Meal Competition Heats Up Among Four Major Convenience Store Chains
Sales Rise As One- and Two-Person Households Fuel Demand for Chuseok Meal Kits

With Chuseok approaching, the convenience store industry is gearing up for competition in ready-made meals for the holiday. As the number of one- to two-person households increases, there is greater demand for the convenient purchase of just enough food for the holidays rather than personally preparing elaborate traditional dishes. Convenience stores are expanding their product lines, offering everything from lunchboxes containing traditional holiday foods such as bulgogi, japchae, jeon, and namul, to kimbap, rice balls, musubi, and desserts, all targeting single-person celebrants, or so-called “honmyeongjok.”

The four major convenience store chains (CU, GS25, 7-Eleven, and Emart24) announced on September 8 that they will launch a series of new ready-to-eat products using representative Chuseok dishes for the holiday.

CU, operated by BGF Retail, will launch its “Plentiful Chuseok Full-Course Lunchbox” on September 15. Priced at 6,500 won, it includes soy sauce bulgogi, japchae, assorted skewers (omi-sanjeok), kimchi jeon, seafood and leek jeon, tri-color namul, and more. CU will also introduce the “Plentiful Chuseok Japchae Jeon Assortment,” which features japchae with assorted jeon, and the “Sesame Songpyeon,” a pack of eight small rice cakes.

GS25, operated by GS Retail, will offer the “Lunchbox of the Month: Chuseok Edition” at 6,900 won, featuring black rice, Jeonju bibimbap, canola greens rice, japchae, grilled short rib patties (tteokgalbi), chicken ribs (dakgalbi), assorted jeon, and songpyeon—all in one package. On September 15, GS25 will release “Chuseok Japchae & Jeon,” featuring japchae, round meat patties (donggeurangttaeng), and omi-sanjeok, as well as bibimbap kimbap stuffed with bulgogi and namul. On September 22, the convenience store will also introduce rice balls with grilled pork ribs (maekjeok).

7-Eleven has expanded its offerings from lunchboxes to kimbap and musubi. Its “Fortune-Filled Tteokgalbi Kimbap” and “Fortune-Filled Meat Skewer Musubi” use its proprietary “Rice Project” technology to maintain rice moisture and stickiness. On September 15, the company will launch the “Fortune-Filled Full-Course Lunchbox,” which contains 11 different side dishes such as beef bulgogi, assorted jeon, smoked duck, and five types of seasoned vegetables.

Emart24 is introducing the “Chuseok Full Moon Feast” for 6,900 won, allowing customers to enjoy both a meal and dessert with one purchase. It includes black rice, Korean pork bulgogi, three types of jeon, japchae, tri-color namul, and a mini glutinous rice yakgwa dessert. Until the end of September, customers who order in advance through the mobile app and use partnered payment methods will receive a 30% discount.

Sales of holiday ready-to-eat meals are also on the rise. According to CU, sales of Chuseok lunchboxes during the holiday period increased by 18.5% in 2023, 20.8% in 2024, and 12.2% in 2025 compared to the previous year. During last year's holiday period, lunchbox sales in areas densely populated with single-person households, such as around universities, studio apartment complexes, and officetels, accounted for 60.5% of total sales. 7-Eleven also reported that sales of Chuseok-themed ready meals in September last year rose by 23% for triangle kimbap and 15% for lunchboxes compared to the previous year.

An industry official stated, “Recently, more consumers have sought to simply purchase only the foods they need for Chuseok and enjoy them conveniently. The convenience store industry is also responding to these changes in consumption patterns by expanding the selection of holiday ready meals beyond lunchboxes to kimbap, rice balls, single-serve dishes, and desserts.”

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