Southeast Asian mango jellies steal hearts of MZs
Imported mango-flavored products from Southeast Asian nations have become increasingly popular among Korea’s MZ generation, as the delicious treat is creating quite a buzz online with their sales in local retailers increasing dramatically, according to market observers, Thursday.
The trend began with people aged between 20 to 30, who after tasting the mango-flavored confection while traveling in the region, decided to buy some when returning home.
The viral search trend has shaken the country’s local retailers with a sharp rise in demand, while those who have managed to purchase the delicious treat are now sharing which stores still have it in stock.
GS25, a convenience store chain belonging to GS Retail, has responded to the rising trend by promoting its product Mango Jelly on Instagram. Calling it a “mustbring item from Thailand,” the company in January created the hashtag #Mahachanok Mango Jelly, for the jelly product — imported from Thailand — which is priced at 2,000 won ($1.52), using mahachanok, an artificially developed treat that closely resembles the taste of Thai mangos, as a main ingredient.
Comments on the post by consumers followed, praising its richness, chewiness and quality which is almost on par with the actual fruit.
Top Fruit Fudge, a mango jelly product of Vietnam, are yet another hit in Korea’s retail outlets including convenience stores and online shopping platforms like Coupang. GS25 launched the product last month and saw its sales reach 10,000 in just a week. CU, another major convenience store franchise in the country, saw the same product’s sales from January to March jumping 253.7 percent from the previous year.
The popularity is not restricted to particular products or brands as consumers appear to be buying a number of different types of mango-flavored snacks from overseas. It has formed a movement online whereby people are now sharing any mango-flavored product they happen to come across. Among those are confectionary shop owners in local markets promoting different kinds of mango-flavored products, which they are selling, including Rich Apple Mango Jelly from China.
One Instagram user last year posted an ad looking for people interested in joining a bulk-ordering group for mango jelly products so that they could purchase them for a discounted price.
Among retailer operators, meanwhile, securing enough stock of the products has become more difficult than before because of the rise in demand. On an online community reserved for the country’s convenience store owners, saw that many posts were from those facing shortages of the products and are calling for larger shipments of the products.
“With the country’s overseas travellers on a consistent rise, there came increasing opportunities for them to visit Southeast Asian countries and taste local sweets,” a market expert said.