South Korea: HiteJinro’s beer sales up 12% in 2020

HiteJinro has been leading the growth and development of the domestic beer market through endless innovations based on its 90 years of brewing technology, the Korea Times reported on April 5.

Its lineup of beer products varies from its signature item Hite beer and the country's first all-malt Max beer, to the country's first sparkling beer, FiLite.

HiteJinro was the first local brewery to attach a thermometer to its beer labels in 1995 to provide guidance to customers on optimal serving conditions. Three years later, it introduced a real-name production system and invented new brewing technology to manage beer temperature.

It launched its latest lager brand Terra three years ago with an ambition to capture the best-selling beer title.

The lager sold over 1.65 billion bottles in two years since its introduction, which the brewery breaks down as 26 beers sold every second, making it the fastest-selling beer here.

In fact, it sold 1 million boxes in the shortest period of any beer here ― 100 million bottles in 100 days and 680 million bottles in one year.

The explosive popularity of Terra led to 105 percent sales growth in 2020 year-on-year. This is a significant result considering that the alcoholic beverage market here has experienced a decline in beer and soju consumption as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Last year, Terra's sales coming from the household market grew 120 percent, which showed HiteJinro's lager product is not only people's favorite at restaurants or bars.

Terra's success is contributing much to HiteJinro's overall beer sales too. In 2020, the overall sales of beer at HiteJinro soared by 12 percent compared to that in 2019, which is a notable outcome considering the shrunken liquor market affected by the pandemic.

This year, HiteJinro plans to recapture the top position in the local beer market via aggressive marketing of its Terra brand, amid softened quarantine measures expected on the back of vaccination rollouts.

HiteJinro signed a memorandum of understanding with global recycling company TerraCycle on March 2 to promote an eco-friendly campaign. The brewery will collect reusable materials including cans, glass bottles and plastics to make goods with.

"We will continue to offer a distinguished brand experience through various marketing campaigns and recapture the best-seller title," HiteJinro Marketing Officer Oh Sung-tak said.

E-malt.com, the global information source for the brewing and malting industry professionals. The bi-weekly E-malt.com Newsletters feature latest industry news, statistics in graphs and tables, world barley and malt prices, and other relevant information. Click here to get full access to E-malt.com. If you are a Castle Malting client, you can get free access to E-malt.com website and publications. Contact us for more information at marketing@castlemalting.com .