[비즈한국] The retail industry had immense expectations for Netflix's 'Squid Game Season 2.' However, after its release, some are expressing disappointment that the sales boost has not met their expectations.
Harim136480 gets a product marketing opportunity with Squid Game 2, but will 'The Misik Squid Ramen' take off?
At the end of last year, the retail industry's focus was entirely on 'Squid Game.' Even before Netflix released 'Squid Game Season 2' on December 26, retailers scrambled to launch Squid Game-related products. Since the original 'Squid Game,' which aired in 2021, caused a worldwide sensation, expectations for Season 2 were exceptionally high.
GS25, an official Netflix partner, has released over 30 collaborative products related to Squid Game 2 since late November last year. Ottogi007310, CJ Olive Young, and CJ CheilJedang097950 also introduced products related to Squid Game Season 2. A representative from CJ CheilJedang stated, "This is our first time conducting a content-based collaboration event as a global campaign. We are running the campaign primarily in South Korea and the United States, and the response has been positive."
Harim Industrial, which uses Squid Game lead actor Lee Jung-jae as the advertising model for its 'The Misik' brand, unexpectedly gained a promotional opportunity. This is because their new product, 'The Misik Squid Ramen,' was launched just in time for the airing of Squid Game 2. Squid Ramen is the first seafood-based ramen released by The Misik brand. While some have suggested that the new product's advertising used colors and fonts reminiscent of Squid Game to ride the wave of the show's popularity, Harim has stated that the product is completely unrelated to Squid Game 2.
Although Squid Game 2 is generating high buzz, there is also feedback that the popularity of the content is not living up to expectations. A convenience store owner remarked, "When the Squid Game branding appears on product packaging, customers are actually reluctant to buy it. When I place orders, I request products without Squid Game-related packaging," adding, "I think customers might be feeling fatigued because there are too many Squid Game products compared to the actual buzz. I am anxious because the products aren't selling well and I need to clear out the inventory."
Harim Industrial does not disclose sales data for its Squid Ramen. However, a Harim Industrial official explained, "Positive reviews are consistently coming in through our online shopping mall and social media."
Still in single-digit market share in its 4th year
Although Harim's 'The Misik' brand is now in its 4th year since its launch, it is still evaluated as having a low market share. Industry insiders estimate that The Misik brand's market share in the overall ramen market remains in the single digits. Its frozen dumplings and instant rice are in a similar position.
In particular, instant rice sales have been on a downward trend since last year. As of the third quarter of 2023, Harim Industrial's instant rice sales were 13.896 billion won, but they fell to 10.553 billion won in the third quarter of last year. The proportion of instant rice sales within the total product mix also decreased from 27.36% in the third quarter of 2023 to 16.24% in the third quarter of 2024.
When Harim Chairman Kim Hong-kuk launched The Misik brand in 2021, he set a sales target of 70 billion won for 'Jang-in Ramen' for the following year (2022). However, annual sales for The Misik ramen line still hover in the low 20 billion won range. Contrary to Chairman Kim's desire to grow The Misik into a 1.5 trillion won mega-brand, growth has been sluggish. While Harim Industrial's sales increased from 21.7 billion won in 2021 to 46.1 billion won in 2022 and 70.5 billion won in 2023, its losses have grown every year. Operating losses rose from 58.8 billion won in 2021 to 86.8 billion won in 2022 and 109.5 billion won in 2023.
The export ambitions expressed at the time of the brand's launch have also dampened. At the 2021 press conference for the launch of The Misik Jang-in Ramen, Harim mentioned that they had received inquiries about overseas launches, mainly from the Americas, even before the product was released, and were discussing exports with Europe and some Southeast Asian countries. Chairman Kim also stated, "We expect to be able to export starting next year (2022)."
In fact, it is known that Harim exported The Misik Jang-in Ramen to five Southeast Asian countries, including Malaysia, Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, and the Philippines, in 2022. At the time, Harim explained that with Squid Game becoming immensely popular in Southeast Asia in 2021, inquiries for Jang-in Ramen (which uses Lee Jung-jae as a model) had increased, leading to an uptick in export volume. They also stated their ambition to expand their export lineup starting with Jang-in Ramen.
However, it has been confirmed that The Misik's exports were discontinued shortly thereafter. Currently, The Misik has zero overseas sales. Harim Industrial is keeping quiet about the reasons for the suspension of exports. A Harim Industrial official stated, "Exports are currently under internal review, and we are focusing solely on the domestic market."
The official added, "It has been four full years since the launch of The Misik. As we are a latecomer to the market, we believe it is still a stage for investment, so we are focusing our efforts on research and development."