"No More Homemade Jeon and Japchae"... Shinsegae Department Store Expands Chuseok Meal Gift Sets

14 Gift Sets Featuring Menus by Renowned Chefs and Culinary Researchers, 3 More Than Last Year

Holiday Meal Gift Set Sales Grow by Over 49% Annually

Shinsegae Department Store is expanding its holiday food gift sets ahead of Chuseok, making it easier for customers to enjoy traditional holiday dishes such as braised short ribs (galbi-jjim), pan-fried delicacies (jeon), seasoned vegetables (namul), and japchae. This move comes as an increasing number of consumers prefer to purchase ready-made holiday foods instead of preparing them at home, leading the company to strengthen its offerings in this category.

On September 16, Shinsegae Department Store announced that, for this year’s Chuseok, it will release 14 types of holiday food gift sets featuring menus created by renowned culinary researchers and chefs. The company has added three more varieties compared to last year and enhanced the composition of its premium menus.

Signature items include the 'Sihwadang Hanwoo Galbijjim Set' (350,000 won) and the 'Sihwadang Premium Delicacy Set' (250,000 won), curated by Korean cuisine researcher Kim Jaehee’s brand, Sihwadang. The sets feature premium Korean beef short ribs, grilled meat patties (tteokgalbi), japchae, and other holiday specialties.

'Saebyukjong,' a brand showcased by Chef Seo-Young Cho, known for her appearance on the Netflix variety show 'Heukbaek Chef,' is releasing the 'Octopus Hanwoo Galbijjim Set' (290,000 won). Meanwhile, the side dish brand 'Dorikaechim' has collaborated with the rice cake brand 'Dongbyungsangryun' to offer the 'Royal Banquet Set' (270,000 won), which includes songpyeon (half-moon rice cakes), chilled seafood salad, various types of jeon, and more.

Demand for holiday food gift sets has been increasing rapidly. According to Shinsegae Department Store, sales of holiday food gift sets have risen by more than 49% each year for the past three years. This trend is attributed to consumers seeking to reduce the time and effort required to prepare traditional dishes, such as pan-fried delicacies and seasoned vegetables, while still enjoying a properly prepared holiday meal.

A similar preference for purchasing ready-made meals is evident in everyday eating habits. With more dual-income households and changing dietary lifestyles, an increasing number of consumers are choosing to buy prepared side dishes and home-cooked meals in the store’s food section, rather than making everything themselves.

To meet this demand for home-cooked meals, Shinsegae Department Store is also expanding its range of related products in its food halls. The Gangnam branch, for example, opened 'Shinsegae Market' in February last year and revamped its side dish section into a premium home meal specialty zone. By broadening the selection to include not only basic side dishes but also specialty meals and gift sets, the Gangnam branch’s side dish section saw its sales increase by roughly 1.5 times in the first half of this year compared to the same period last year.

Heejeong Han, Executive Director of the Korean Cuisine Research Institute at Shinsegae Department Store, said, "More customers are seeking to reduce both the time and effort spent on meal prep, while still enjoying high-quality food. For this Chuseok, we have prepared a diverse range of meal sets so that customers can conveniently enjoy the expertise and flavors of famous chefs in their own homes."

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