Samyang’s Buldak hot sauce goes viral with fiery global campaign

Innocean's global campaign for Samyang Foods' Buldak hot sauce (Innocean)

Innocean, the marketing agency affiliated with Hyundai Motor Group, said Tuesday that it has launched the global campaign for Samyang Foods’ new product, Buldak hot sauce.

Titled “Ride the Buldak High,” the campaign features nine short-form videos that creatively highlight the intense spiciness of the sauce.

Released on May 15, the videos have quickly gained popularity on global social media platforms, especially among Generation Z audiences.

The campaign leverages meme-inspired humor and vertical video formats to align with digital content consumption trends.

A standout element in the videos is the visual of a character being rocketed into the sky after tasting the sauce, symbolizing the fiery sensation and emotional high from having sauce.

Since the campaign’s release, Samyang Foods, the maker of the hot-selling Buldak ramyeon series, has seen a sharp rise in traffic to its official website, Buldak.com, and a surge in social media followers.

User-generated content continues to spread organically, especially in the US, with plans to roll out the campaign in more countries.

"The campaign signals a new phase in Buldak's global brand evolution by activating multifaceted brand communication channels such as an augmented reality game and a Coachella Festival booth," said Innocean's Executive Creative Director Kim Ki-young.