Cheaper convenience store chicken products gaining popularity in Korea

7-Eleven Inc. convenience store‘s chicken [Photo provided by 7-Eleven]

Korean convenience stores are seeing sales of chicken products rise as an alternative to those sold at franchises as they offer small-size products for one or two people to enjoy and consumers can buy them when they want as the stores are located near their house.

7-Eleven Inc., a multinational chain of retail convenience stores, said on Sunday that its chicken sales had tripled in February and March this year from the same period last year. Its sales had increased by 20 percent in the first half of last year from a year earlier and by 50 percent in the second half as demand increased due to the World Cup games in Qatar, but this year sales are rising at a higher rate.

CU, a local convenience store chain, also said that its instant fried chicken products saw a 165 percent increase in sales this month compared with the same month last year and GS25, another convenience store chain, said that its sales jumped 181 percent from the same month last year.

This trend is attributable mainly to cost-effectiveness of convenience store chicken products. Major franchise chicken companies have raised the prices due to the worsening profit structure of affiliated stores, transforming chicken into an expensive dine-out menu.

As of this month, the average price of fried chicken at the country’s major franchises is around 18,600 won ($14.15). If 3,000 won to 5,000 won is added for delivery, the price soars to the mid-20,000 won range. If a consumer orders non-fried chicken products for delivery, it costs about 30,000 won per chicken.

The average price of fried chicken at convenience stores, on the other hand, is around 10,600 won. “The recent rise in raw material prices, along with increases in operating costs at affiliated stores, such as rent and labor costs, pushed up chicken prices,” said an industry official. “It is only natural for consumers to buy cheaper chicken worth around 10,000 won if there is no distinct difference in weight and taste.”

Furthermore, convenience stores have a distribution structure simpler than that of franchises. They also use relatively inexpensive subsidiary materials such as soybean oil and packaging boxes.

Convenience store chicken products are also highly accessible to single-person households because they sell small pieces of chicken instead of a whole chicken. 7-Eleven said that as of March, its sales of chicken pieces in residential areas were overwhelmingly higher than in other commercial areas. CU also saw sales of chicken pieces rise 170.2 percent this month.

In the past, it was common for convenience stores to sell pre-cooked chicken pieces after warming them, but recently, they fry them at their outlet when an order comes in, just like franchises, which also plays a part in increasing sales. Seasonal factors also helped increase sales. The increase in the number of outings in the warm spring weather in March and increased student traffic with the start of the new semester also had an effect.