NEW MARKETING MEASURES TO PROMOTE K-FOOD

[Anchor Lead]

Korean food is broadening its presence in the Chinese market even during the COVID-19 pandemic. In order to appeal to the young Chinese consumers in their 20s and 30s, one Korean food corporation has combined an idol concert and no-contact marketing to promote K-food.

[Pkg]

​A concert by a popular Chinese idol group launched by a Korean entertainment company. No audience in the studio. Some 810,000 fans logged on to enjoy the concert. The boys consume Korean snacks and beverages during the intermission. A Korean public corporation sponsored the concert to publicize K-food to young consumers in China.

[Soundbite] HANYU & XINLONG(MEMBERS OF BOY STORY) : "We used to eat these every day when we were practicing in Korea. (I still have a can of yuja tea at home.)"

Chinese fans, who couldn’t indulge in cultural activities due to the COVID-19 pandemic, were excited to see the concert.

[Soundbite] (BOY STORY FAN) : "Although I couldn’t go to the concert, I’m happy to see it live. I’m especially curious about what they’re eating, so I’m going to do an internet search."

[Soundbite] (LIVE TELECAST OF K-FOOD PROMOTION) : "Here, try this. It’s honey roasted almonds. (This is Xinlong’s favorite.)"

The live telecast of K-food promotion, right after the concert garnered more than 100 million views in just 12 hours. Chinese consumers have shown growing interest in Korean instant food items and premade healthy meals since the outbreak. In fact, export of Korean ramyeon in the first quarter jumped 45.5% on-year.

[Soundbite] JEONG YEON-SU(HEAD, aT BEIJING OFFICE): "Over in China, the people have been unable to satisfy their cultural or consumption needs. So, we’re pushing no-contact marketing to start another K-food wave in China."

There's projected to be more than 526 million live streaming viewers in China this year. K-food is making new attempts to fully utilize the no-contact market, created by the COVID-19 era.