History of coffee industry in Korea

Coffee, which has spread from Ethiopia to Arabia, Europe and then to Korea, has become the most beloved beverage among today's Korean people. After liberation, instant coffee was first introduced to Korea through the U.S. military, and coffee became popular in earnest. In the 1970s, Dongsuh Foods led localization of coffee by mass-producing instant and regular coffee, and in the 1990s, coffee shops replaced teahouses. After the 1997 financial crisis, office workers made coffee on their own as companies downsized on secretarial staff, leading to a further growth in instant coffee mix market. In 1999, the first foreign brand Starbucks was introduced to Korea and the culture of takeout espresso coffee took off. As consumers' preferences of coffee constantly evolve, the demand for high-quality specialty coffee has emerged, individual roasters have grown in order to meet the demand, and a viral marketing through SNS has been used as a growth engine. In 2020, the spread of coronavirus(COVID-19) is affecting the global coffee market. As many offices, coffee shops, and restaurants practice social distancing, out-of-home sales such as coffee shops have decreased, whereas sales for a takeout coffee and home-café products have increased.

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