Chinese magazine 21st Century Business Herald reported on the 24th about China's tea drink brand "CHAGEE," which is increasing its presence in South Korea, under the title "5 Stores Opened in One Month, CHAGEE Becomes Very Popular in South Korea."

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Regarding CHAGEE, it was recently reported that the brand officially entered the South Korean market at the end of April, simultaneously opening three stores in commercial areas of Seoul.

According to the article, the City Hall store opened in Seoul on March 22nd. The previous day, the Yeoksam store opened, with customer queues stretching for over ten meters. Meanwhile, at the Gangnam flagship store, which had been open for about three weeks, a system was introduced allowing only customers who received a product pickup notification via an app to enter.

South Korea is CHAGEE's eighth overseas market, and the brand is led by its founder and CEO, Zhang Junjie.

According to the article, all five stores are located in central commercial areas of Seoul, and locations that can attract customers and generate buzz have been chosen.

Meanwhile, regarding products, milk tea and tea lattes are the main offerings, with an awareness of their intersection with South Korea's coffee culture. The main price range is 5,000 to 6,000 won (approximately 500 to 600 yen).

Furthermore, the spread of its popularity is attributed to the presence of popular stars and social media, and the genuine reaction shown by Jang Won-young, a member of the South Korean girl group IVE, when she drank a CHAGEE product during a live stream at the end of January, was widely spread in South Korea. The local operating team reportedly utilized this to increase brand awareness.

Instagram and TikTok accounts were also opened in advance, and it is said that "many consumers showed strong interest even before the opening."

However, the article also noted that "it still needs to be observed whether CHAGEE can normalize its current high customer attraction," adding that "currently, not all of CHAGEE's overseas stores are in a healthy state," and argued that "to establish itself long-term in overseas markets, it will be a long battle involving brand recognition and cultural dissemination, rather than just copying stores." In April, Zhang stated, "Internally, we are thinking about overseas expansion in terms of decades," and asked investors for greater understanding and patience. (Translated and edited by Noya)