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Soju products from Hite Jinro are displayed on the shelves of a Makro discount store in Thailand. (Hite Jinro) |
Sales of Hite Jinro’s soju products in Thailand reached $1.55 million in the first half of 2021, up 210 percent from the corresponding period last year, said the South Korean liquor maker on Wednesday.
Hite Jinro is the longtime provider of some of the oldest soju brands in South Korea, including Jinro, Chamisul and, recently, Jinro Is Back.
Since its pledge to globalize soju in 2016, the liquor maker has made various efforts to expand soju’s presence in the Southeast Asian country.
Hite Jinro has worked with major discount chains in Thailand and distributed its soju products to BigC, the second-largest supermarket chain, and Makro, a sister company of 7-Eleven. Chamisul Soju and its fruit-flavored soju products were popular among drinkers at home and contributed to increases in sales, the company explained.
Soju products from the company will be available at some 5,000 7-Eleven stores, the biggest convenience store chain in Thailand.
Hite Jinro also held a variety of events to raise brand awareness in Thailand. The company has been hosting soju tasting events called “Jinro Day” since December at various restaurants in capital city Bangkok.
“We are concentrating on leading the K-soju market in Southeast Asian countries like Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia. We expect to continue double-digit growth this year, as we raise brand awareness in Thailand and push with our globalization strategy,” said Hwang Jung-ho, managing director at Hite Jinro.
By Kang Jae-eun (
kang.jaeeun@heraldcorp.com)
