The Spanish Iberian ham (iberico ham) is making its way in Seoul. Spanish restaurants are doing the same slowly but at a sure pace in the South Korean capital city.
According to the information published by the Commercial Office of the Spanish Embassy in Seoul, there are now about 116 companies selling Spanish meat products, wich are allowed to market their goods in this Asian country. Among them, COVAP (cooperative Los Pedroches) Campofrío Navidul Extremadura, El Pozo, Sanchez Romero Carvajal Jabugo or Joselito, just to quote some examples of world reputed Spanish corporations and brands, doing business in South Korea.
The wine market, however, remains as a pending issue for the Spaniard producers and exporters by several reasons, including the leading position in the mind of consumers of French and Italian wines and the fact that Chile signed a free trade agreement with the Asian country that provides the wines from the South American country with an advantage in price against those comming from Europe.
The signing of a protocol on export of fresh pork between Spain and South Korea has resulted, since 2005, in a rise in sales of Spanish pork products, thanks to the shortage of supply in the domestic market of this Asian country.
The figures of Spanish meat products shipments begin to be considerable and may continue on the rise, despite the strict sanitary control by the NVRQS (National Veterinary Research and Quarantine Service in South Korea).
With the KOEU ALC-EU-Korea trade agreement, the current import tariff on these products will be reduced from 5 to 10 segments, depending on the classification of the good.
Isaac Cabañas (founder of the gourmet import company IBERKO), which is devoted to import Spanish high range meat products (Iberic ham an sausages) explained to Eastwind: “We are thinking about expanding the range of products. Though we are operating just for some few months we have surpassed all our forecasts. In the short term we want to include more gourmet products in our portfolio.”
A narrow opportunity for Spanish wines, but an opportunity at the end
With very high growth in annual figures of wine imports (19.2%), due to the free trade agreement signed in 2002 with Chile, wine sales in Corea reached its peak in the period between September 2007 and September 2008.
The crisis led to a fall in consumption and a to depreciation of the won that resulted in a huge rise in the prices of imported goods.
During 2009 and 2010, wine imports fell down, but the data recorded until September 2011 show a positive turn.
With French and Chilean wines dominating the market, Spain is in the 5th place (in value) and the 2nd in volume in the rankings of wine imports to Korea .
While the trend in the case of French and Chilean wines is the purchase of branded wine, for Spanish products the bulk imports of red and white wines are still very high. A fact so desirable fro Spanish wine producers as the aim is to position their products in the segment of branded high quality wines targeting medium or well provided purses, rising this way the commercial margin in each shipment.
I had the opportuniry to check first hand the situation of the Spanish wines at Hanaro Mart, one of the best known and best assorted hypermarkets in theSouth Korean capital.
The venue offers a wine corner were there are several shelves full of Chilean wines, and found that for every 12 French wine brands, the number from Italy were around six and from Spain more or less three.
Another handicap when it comes to marketing Spanish wines at affordable prices is the rigid distribution system in three levels (importer, distributor and retailer) determined by the licenses granted by the Korean Administration.
And I say till now, because retailers are starting to skip the importers and buying wines at the sourcing country.
“The wine market is very difficult and is almost monopolized. Not having enough knowledge on it this is not an area where we plan to enter in the medium term,” pointed the founder of IBERKO.
Only a young Spanish wine, Finca Enguera White 2011, succeeded to make its way into the menu of the gala dinner at the end of the culinary summit Seoul Gourmet.
This wine from Valencia accompanied two of the seven dishes served, specifically the Tuna Pizza, Truffle, Micro Veets, Micro Perilla, by the chef Akira Back (restaurant Yellow Tail -Hotel Bellagio in Las Vegas-) and this Spanish wine also was served with the Reserved Lemon Risotto, Squid, Smoked Provolone Cheese by Gennaro Esposito (chef and owner of the restaurant Torre del Saracino -Sicily, Italy-).
Samuel Koo (Chairman of Seoul Gourmet) explained during the dinner for the press at the restaurant Si-Wha-Dam, that the reason why Spanish wines were scarce or inexistent in the wine lists of the Korean high-end restaurants and in the dinners offered by Seoul Gourmet was precisely the price.Due to the agreement with Chile the wines, also the high quality ones, from this country were far more affordable.
Spanish tapas and small dishes increasingly popular in Seoul
“The issue of Spanish food is bursting in Korea, especially in Seoul. The Italian market is very saturated and there are chains that are creating and transforming Italian restaurant brands into tapas bars. The Spanish tapas concept fits well to the Korean style and offers many chances, “explained to Eastwind Isaac Cabañas (founder of IBERKO), who believes that a franchise like Lizarran, for example, would have room for development in the Korean capital.
As I could experience during my stay in Seoul, for a traditional Korean dinner or lunch they are usually served a rice dish along with many side dishes of all kinds (kimchi, tofu, meat, mushrooms, cooked vegetables, marinated and fermented in tahousands of ways, etc. ..). Sometimes they are rice flour tortillas and vegetable leafs which for the guest to fill with the contents chosen from the many little pots containing the side dishes on the table. Once filled the tortilla or vegetable leafs must be rolled wrapping the contents. Done this one can eat and enjoy the flavours and textures. Koreans are used to wrap each bite and variety of these bites compose a traditional Korean meal.Those eating uses provide a fertile ground for the introduction of Spanish tapas restaurant concepts.
Korean people like spending money on eating in restaurants for fun
Spend on restaurants accounts for a 14% of the total budget of an average Korean family, according to the data released by the Commercial Office of the Embassy of Spain in Seoul.
This fact is important as mi tplaces reataurant services third in the third spot, just under education (16%) and food and soft drinks (15% of the average Korean family budget).
Then they follow transport (12%), housing, water and electricity (8%), health and communications (each takes the 6%), clothing and footwear and culture and leisure (both sections with a 5% of total expenditure respectively) and furniture and house decor (4%).
According to the data of the Better Life Index, recently published by the OECD, the average annual salary per person of the citizens of South Korea is at $16,570, well below the OECD average, which stands at $ 22,387 per year.
Given that in recent times women have been joining the labour market, many families have at least two incomes. Women earnings can significantly increase the monthly income per family. A rise in family budgets taht comes with a continously decreasing number of children.
According to the mentioned OECD Better Life Index, there exists in the country a considerable imbalance between the level of income of the wealthiest segments and that of the poorest. The fact is that a privileged group comprising a 20% of Koreans earn more than five times the salary received by the 20% of the population with the lowest salaries.
Folowing OECD data, South Korea has 46.5 million dwellers, and around a 20% of them live in Seoul.
Besides the good business opportunity that all these facts provide for Spanish products in retail and other distribution cahnnels, the opening of Spanish restaurants may increase in different ways the demand of the “made in spain” food and beverage products, and among them, Spanish wines.
First, because a true Spanish restaurant needs to be supplied with this kind of goods. And second, because this sort of establishments also are in some extent a gate to introduce Spanish products in the eating habits of the Korean consumers. Who would promote better the “foods from Spain” brand than a professional in a restaurant treating and cooking the Spanish ingredients and food products in the best way?.
Seoul: Five good Spanish restaurants, and many other tapas-like venues on the rise
Despite the interest for the Spanish tapas has been on the rise among Koreans in latest years, the founder of IBERKO explained to Eastwind, that Seoul still offers today a fairly limited number of quality Spanish restaurants. He listed among the best the following: Three establishments belonging to the chain Club Spain; the restaurant El Olivo; Mi Casa and an establishment called Chef Espana, which is led by the Spanish cook Manuel Manzano, and opened just few days ago.
Manuel Manzano was also responsible for Bodega, a well reputed tapas-wine bar, by its good Spanish ham and tasty Spanish omelette, among other tapas and small dishes.
Besides these restaurants considered by Isaac Cabañas (the founder of IBERKO) as the best, there are some others that in one way or another do not offer a Spanish cuisine of the same quality or purity.
“Then there are el Casa de, which is just a sort of intent, that despite having a very nice location in a very good district… the menu is full of pasta and pizza” … “The Paella, which is the first Spanish restaurant, which opened at Seoul, yet there’s now no Spanish chef at the stoves and this is too evident.” Cabañas listed this way the Spanish-but actually not Spanish restaurants at the Korean capital city and he continued, ” then there is Pakito, which is a tavern with pintxos but rather just to drink something…But it is very original and Pakito is such a a nice guy, he is Korean. ”
Then, the “Albaizyn with two (establishments). It serves also pintxos and drinks …”Cabañas also quoted Mi Madre, … a very humble place where the food is not worth it, and a few that sell tapas, but they are not Spanish.
Finally the founder of IBERKO referred to Bongo, a venue belonging to a big restaurant group. He explained to Eastwind, that restaurants the like of Bongo are considered by most of industry operators and professionals as the kind of concept that probably will succeed in the future within the Korean market.
Image over the headline.- One of the restaurants belonging to the chain Spain CLub in Seoul. © Spain CLub.
Related eastwind Marketing links:
Related Eastwind links:
Seoul Gourmet 2012.- How to make Makkoli (traditional Korean rice whine) -video-
Seoul Gourmet 2012.- The magic of Korean fermentations (videos):
Seoul Gourmet 2012.- Korean tea ceremony (video)
Seoul Gourmet 2012.- The Japanese chef Tetsuya Wakuda (show cooking) -video-
