SEOUL, KOREA - With the beginning of “kimjang” season, the sales of kimchi refrigerators are rising at a rapid pace. Kimjang refers to the annual making of large batches of kimchi, a staple of the Korean diet.
For the period from November 1 to 12, 2013, the sales of kimchi refrigerators shot up by 60 percent year on year at Lotte Hi-Mart.
The sales of to ploading-typemodels increased by 50 percent, while those of door-drawer types increased by about 70 percent.In particular, the sales of 300-liter door-drawer models marked a sharp increase of 90 percent.
A Hi-Martofficial said, “An increasing number of consumers are showing preference toward buying kimchi refrigerators as the number of households which enjoy the annual making of large batches of kimchi is increasing.”
Korea’s kimchi refrigerator market entered the phase of saturation with the rate of households with a kimchi refrigerator estimated to have reached 90 percent. The market size is estimated at around 800,000 units per year.