Early Heat Drives Surge in Bingsu and Iced Coffee Sales in Korea
Creatrip Team
a month ago
Unseasonably early summer heat in South Korea has boosted demand for seasonal cafe items like iced coffee and bingsu (shaved ice dessert). Dunkin’ reported over 700,000 iced coffees sold from June 1–21, a 7% increase year-on-year, and expects double-digit growth for the season. Dunkin’ also introduced large-format and specialty cold drinks such as a 1.4L “Giant Bucket” and a sparkling Americano. Sulbing’s mango bingsu sales topped 330,000 in May, up 24% from last year; on peak days about 20,000 servings were sold nationwide. Sulbing credits trends like mango and grapefruit desserts and a reinterpretation of a Chinese-style dessert (yangzikanlu) for driving interest, and has expanded offerings with apple-mango cheese bingsu and convenient cup bingsu. Compose Coffee saw cup bingsu sales double after promotions and free-sample events. Meteorological alerts have come earlier than last year, with heat advisories issued for Seoul and surrounding areas, extending Korea’s bingsu and iced-drink season.
