"I Always Buy This When I Visit Korea": A Hit in Japan, Too... This Sold 80,000 in a Single Day [How We Shop Today]

Paris Baguette's Chocolate Chewy Churros Gain Popularity
3.8 Million Sold in Just a Month and a Half
Products Featuring a "Chewy" Texture Continue to Thrive
Beyond Taste: The Fun of Chewing and Sharing on Social Media

Editor's NoteWhat are people buying these days? From household essentials they pick up at Daiso and cosmetics that sell out at Olive Young to bread people line up to buy, familiar scenes of consumption capture the market trends of today. "How We Shop Today" is a series that explores current consumer trends through the things that sell well in everyday life. It takes an in-depth look at changes on the consumer front, examining which products are chosen and what strategies persuade people to open their wallets.

Paris Baguette Chocolate Chewy Churros. Paris Baguette

Every afternoon, a curious scene unfolds as the display shelves at neighborhood franchise stores are left completely empty. The star of the moment is Paris Baguette's "Chocolate Chewy Churros." Combining a chewy dough and a rich dark chocolate coating with the familiar crisp texture of churros, the product has become a huge hit, selling 3.8 million units just a month and a half after its launch. In the dessert market, "chewy desserts" that emphasize not only flavor but also the fun of chewing are emerging as a new formula for success.

3.8 Million Sold in One Month... "One Sold Every Two Seconds"

According to the food industry on October 31, Paris Baguette's "Chocolate Chewy Churros," launched on October 2, had sold approximately 3.8 million units by October 19. After reaching the 1 million mark just 24 days after launch and selling 1.7 million units in one month, the product has surged past 3.8 million units in the latest tally, selling at a rate of "one every two seconds."

This pace is among the fastest for new products from franchise bakeries. In particular, in commercial districts near Dongguk University and Chungmuro in Seoul, stores are selling out as soon as they can bake the churros, continuing late into the evening. Some stores are even selling more than 600 a day, leading to shortages.

Paris Baguette's "LA Chocolate Chewy Donut." Paris Baguette

Thanks to the explosive demand, other chocolate desserts from Paris Baguette have also benefited in turn. As more consumers buy them alongside the Chocolate Chewy Churros, average daily sales of the "LA Chocolate Chewy Donut" have surged 20-fold compared with the third week of September. Sales of frozen desserts, including "Pave Blanc" and "Pave Chocolate Cake," have also risen, creating a spillover effect.

Consumption Beyond "Taste" to "Sound and Texture"... Short-Form Videos Fuel Word of Mouth

The secret to the product's popularity lies in the change in texture added to a familiar snack. Based on the original "Chewy Churros," Chocolate Chewy Churros are made by frying chocolate dough and coating the outside with dark chocolate. They combine the characteristic crispness of churros with chewy dough and a rich chocolate flavor to create what is known as a "crunchy outside, chewy inside" texture. While typical churros emphasize a crisp texture and the sweetness of cinnamon sugar, this product sets itself apart with its combination of chewiness and chocolate.

More noteworthy is that the product has prompted a large number of spontaneous reviews from consumers. On social media, ASMR videos showing people pulling apart the chewy cross-section or cracking the chocolate coating have garnered millions of views. Consumers are sharing their own recipes for pairing the churros with milk, whipped cream, and ice cream, and some are even traveling to specific stores known for applying an especially thick chocolate coating to buy them. 

The popularity has spread to Japanese social media as well. A Japanese account introducing Korean cafes and food recently featured the Chocolate Chewy Churros as a dessert attracting attention in Korea. A user on X (formerly Twitter) quoted the post and shared a review after buying the product. "I went to the store around 10 p.m. the day before, bought two, and they were so delicious that I ate them all," the user wrote. "I couldn't forget them, so I went back to the store around 3 p.m. the next day and bought more." The user added, "I found a really delicious dessert," describing it as "crispy, moist, and chewy." The post garnered more than 6.1 million views.

From Glutinous Rice Cakes to Ice Cream... The Winning Formula of Products with a Chewy Twist

The success of chewy textures is not limited to bakeries. Cafes, convenience stores, and ice cream makers are also rolling out desserts that combine the chewiness of rice cakes with the smoothness of cream.

GS25 Limited-Edition Glutinous Rice Cake Series. GS Retail

GS25's "Hanjeongseon Yogurt Glutinous Rice Cake," launched in October, sold 260,000 units in just four days. The product was created in collaboration with Hanjeongseon, a dessert brand that started in Seongsu-dong, and manufacturer Loromello. Yogurt cream is packed inside the glutinous rice cake, highlighting the contrast between its chewy outer layer and soft filling.

In the cafe industry, The Venti has launched Yogobora, a dessert brand based on homemade Greek yogurt, and introduced "Yogomochi." The chewy glutinous rice cakes are filled with Greek yogurt and a variety of toppings, including peach, corn, and melon.

Mega MGC Coffee's "Butter Chewy Rice Cake" also demonstrates the success of differentiating through texture. Launched in April, the product had sold 5 million units cumulatively as of August. It combines the rich flavor of butter with the chewiness of rice cake. Although it was initially planned as a limited-time offering, the sales period was extended through December in response to repeated customer requests.

Chaltteok Ice IN Uju Tteokjip Black Sesame Injeolmi. Lotte Wellfood.

A similar trend has emerged in the ice cream industry. Lotte Wellfood's "Chaltteok Ice IN Uju Tteokjip Black Sesame Injeolmi," launched in collaboration with tvN's variety show "Uju Tteokjip," sold out its initial batch of approximately 500,000 units in just five days. The product wraps black sesame ice cream with sweet injeolmi syrup in chewy glutinous rice cake. After it repeatedly sold out at convenience stores and supermarkets, the company began additional production. The 500 sets offered for preorder on its official online mall also sold out in 18 hours.

Mentions of "Tteok Pilgrimage" Up 2,278%... Texture Becomes Content, Too

The popularity of chewy desserts is reflected in both online interest and actual purchases. According to big data analytics platform Sometrend, 1,077 blog posts mentioned "tteok pilgrimage" over the past month, a 2,278% increase from the same period a year earlier. The experience of traveling around to find and taste rice cakes is spreading as a form of consumer culture.

Customers look around the "Nationwide Tteok Pilgrimage Season 2" pop-up store on the first basement floor of Lotte Department Store's Jamsil branch in Songpa-gu, Seoul. Lotte Department Store

Demand for rice cakes has also grown in online grocery shopping. According to Kurly, transaction value in the rice cake and traditional Korean confectionery categories from June to August this year was approximately double that of the same period a year earlier. In response to the higher demand, the company expanded its product lineup in these categories by 80%. In particular, transaction value for Chang-eok's "Pumpkin Injeolmi" rose 336% over the same period. Rice cakes, once mainly sought out for holidays and family occasions, are expanding their reach as desserts enjoyed in everyday life.

Experts say consumers now seek not only the basic taste of a product but also the physical pleasure of chewing and visual and auditory enjoyment. The key is to add an entirely new sensory twist to a familiar snack. The chewy sensation that has fueled the Chocolate Chewy Churros craze suggests that, in the food market of the future, success will depend not just on "what it tastes like" but on "what kind of sensory experience it creates for consumers."

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