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[South Korea] The crunchy texture is addictive. A trendy drink topped with snacks is now in vogue in South Korea!

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A series of café menus topped with piles of snacks and popcorn

In South Korea, drinks topped with commercial snacks on top of shakes and smoothies are becoming popular, especially among the MZ generation, a combination of Millennials and Generation Z. The boom was sparked by a product called "퐁크러쉬" from MEGA COFFEE, a famous chain of coffee shops that is known for its cost-effective coffee. The product is called "Ponkrash. The concept is to "discover the greatness of a flavor that everyone knows." The shake is topped with Joripon, a pom candy that is one of Korea's most memorable snacks. Many people became addicted to the savory, sweet taste and addictive crunchy texture. The reasonable price of 3,900 won (about 390 yen) per serving has also spurred its popularity, and from its launch in 2016 through May 2021, sales have exceeded 1.72 million cups in total. This is equivalent to the height of about 35 Mount Everest (8,849 m).
The success of the "Pon Crush" has led to a number of other café chains offering menus topped with piles of snacks, popcorn, and cereal, and in the summer of 2021, the company will launch COMPOSE COFFEE launched 상하목장 바나나 밀크쉐이크" and "초코콕스무디" ( (each 3,900 won/390 yen) are topped with "Banana Kick," a banana-flavored corn snack, and their high-impact visuals have become a hot topic on SNS.

The most important factor of a hit is the visual impact

With the recent neutro boom, the Korean café industry has also begun offering drinks with nostalgic flavors. Ingredients such as mugwort and black sesame were introduced in the form of modern lattes, attracting attention mainly from young women, but they have not penetrated beyond young women and have not yet become a big hit.
Against this backdrop, "Ponkrash," which uses old-fashioned sweets, attracted interest from a wide range of generations, with the younger generation finding it fresh and the middle-aged and older generation feeling nostalgic. However, the most important factor behind the hit was the visual appeal of the product. In South Korea, where the streets are filled with trendy sweets and drinks, the visual must have an impact to be a hit. The toppings that spill out of the plastic cups look cute and have been spread on SNS, increasing awareness of the product. The large volume of the drink was also a key point, and it gained support from busy students in Korea, where it is common for students to attend cram school or take lessons at the same time, as an item that can fill their stomachs while walking around.

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This article is co-authored by TNC Lifestyle Researcher (http://lifestyle.tenace.co.jp/) and Intage's Global Researcher.

Translated with AI Translator

  • TNCアジアトレンドラボ

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    TNC ASIA Trend Lab

    TNC ASIA Trend Lab is an information organization run by TNC Inc. that researches and shares trends in Asia. It supports corporate marketing activities by finding insights from trends rooted in the lifestyles and habits of local consumers.
    http://tnc-trend.jp/

  • Intage Inc

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    Intage Inc.

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  • Jan 11, 2022
  • 2655 Views

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