[Consumer This Week] The Face Shop x Kakao, Homeplus, McDonalds, Fila, CU, Lotte Foods, CJ Foodville

The Face Shop, Kakao launch collaborative cosmetics

South Korean cosmetics brand The Face Shop and Korean mobile messenger KakaoTalk have launched a new collaborative makeup collection.

The new collection includes the brand’s sunscreen, sheet mask packs, perfume, hand cream and lip products that feature Kakao’s six flagship characters Muzi, Apeach, Neo, Frodo, Tube and Jay-G.

“We launched the new collection with aims to add a pinch of fun to people’s daily makeup routines,” said an official from The Face Shop.

The Face Shop is holding a series of promotional events to mark the new collection’s launch. It will hand out a mouse pad for purchases over 10,000 won ($9) and a neck cushion for purchases over 30,000 won.

(jys@heraldcorp.com)

CJ’s Seasons Table opens in Namsan

Korean-style buffet restaurant Seasons Table, operated by CJ Foodville, has opened a new outlet at N Seoul Tower on Mount Namsan, which is one of Seoul’s most visited tourist hotspots.

The new store is on the fourth floor of N Seoul Tower. The restaurant’s interior is designed to resemble a Korean traditional house. It is fitted with 184 seats and also features an exhibit introducing Korean traditional cuisine in English.

The buffet restaurant offers a variety of Korean dishes, including hot stone pot rice and various soups. The weekday lunch buffet costs 14,900 won ($13) per person. Weekday dinners and weekend buffets cost 22,900 won.

“We hope that the new Seasons Table in Namsan will help propagate Korean culinary culture to more foreign visitors in Korea,” said a company official.

(jys@heraldcorp.com)

Homeplus launches new ‘Mak-cider’ drink

South Korean discount supermarket chain Homeplus has rolled out a new beverage Makssai, a drink that recreates the taste of Korea’s beloved mixed drink “Mak-cider.”

Mak-cider is a drink in which Korean traditional rice wine makgeolli is mixed with lemon soda, which is called “cider” in Korean. It was particularly popular in the ’60s and ’70s.

Homeplus’ Makssai has been formulated to include more fizz through prolonged fermentation. A 750-ml bottle costs 990 won ($0.85), similar to the price of a bottle of makgeolli years ago.

“Homeplus in partnership with Woorisool worked for more than six months to launch Mak-cider, a drink that commemorates the past generation. We hope more people will come to love Korea’s traditional drink,” said a Homeplus official.

(jys@heraldcorp.com)

McDonald’s to give out free Egg McMuffins

McDonald’s Korea will be handing out free Egg McMuffins on March 22 in celebration of “National Breakfast Day.”

Starting from 7 a.m., the first 1,000 customers who visit a McDonald’s outlet selling morning menus will receive one free Egg McMuffin. The fast-food franchise will give out some 400,000 McMuffins on the day.

McDonald’s will also give out free cups of premium roasted coffee to all drive-through customers who visit a McDonald’s outlet from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m., until Mar. 19.

The promotional event, which is in its fourth year, aims to introduce the brand’s flagship morning menu to more people around the world, and allow them to start the day with a hearty meal, the company said.

(jys@heraldcorp.com)

FILA opens pop-up stores in Seoul neighborhoods

FILA Korea has opened a FILA Originale pop-up store in Itaewon, Seoul as the first location for its “Ground Project,” which aims to combine fashion with local street culture.

The project, launched to promote the company’s new sub-brand FILA Originale, will be carried out at different parts of the city in the future. Every month, FILA will switch locations and open a new store in a different part of the city.

At the Itaewon pop-up store, which opened on Tuesday, customers can browse through not only FILA Originale goods but also limited-edition T-shirts designed in collaboration with local designers Sonya Lee, MATIYU, Sambypen and KWANZA.

Those who post a picture of a FILA Originale logo, which can be found in the neighborhood around the store, can receive free coffee in the area as well as a discount price on the collaborative T-shirts.

(jys@heraldcorp.com)

Lotte’s Pasteur to export powdered milk to Cambodia

Lotte Food’s premium dairy brand Pasteur has sealed a $13 million deal to export its best-selling Grand Noble Powdered Milk to Cambodia over the next five years.

Pasteur’s powdered milk will be produced locally by Cambodia’s Pharma KLS Research. It will be sold and distributed to local pharmacies, supermarkets and baby goods stores through World Health Pharmaceutical.

Grand Noble is formulated with nutrients found in breastmilk, such as alpha-lactalbumin and active lactic acid bacteria, as well as homegrown 1A grade milk.

“We plan to supply Pasteur’s Grand Noble Powdered Milk in not only Cambodia but also Laos in the future,” said head of Pharma KLS Research Augustine Lee.

(jys@heraldcorp.com)

CU introduces spring-summer seasonal products

CU, South Korea’s leading convenience store chain, is introducing various new drinks and desserts for spring and summer.

CU is expanding its popular Frappe sherbet ice cream dessert lineup to include two new flavors: Frappe Strawberry Banana and Frappe Orange Mango.

The packaging of Delaffe, another of CU’s best-selling iced drinks, has been redesigned to feature characters from Naver’s mobile messaging app LINE. CU will also introduce two new Delaffe flavors: Green Grape Mojito as well as Banana Latte and Mango Coconut.

The convenience store chain also plans to introduce CU Miss Mango Bars as well as the CU Miss Pineapple bar, which are only sold during summer.

By Sohn Ji-young (jys@heraldcorp.com)