Alcoholic beverages domestic sales value South Korea 2013-2021

In 2021, the domestic sales value of alcoholic beverages stood at approximately 4.9 trillion South Korean won. That year, the alcoholic beverage market in South Korea was led by beer with around 40 percent share in sales, followed by soju with about 33 percent. Those two are also often consumed together as somaek (soju + maekju(beer)).

 Beer market in South Korea

The domestic beer industry in South Korea has been growing during the past years, and accordingly, the retail sales value of beer in the market was expected to keep on growing. Although South Koreans liked to try new sorts of beer, the import of beer recorded an all-time low in 2021. This was likely due to the ongoing boycott of products from Japan, which was one of the largest suppliers of beer to South Korea. Despite the openness to try foreign beer, the most preferred beer brand was a domestic one.

 Alcohol consumption during COVID-19

Drinking alcohol plays a big part in the social life of many South Koreans. In their work-life, hoisiks (drinking parties after work) are still a common practice among most companies, but even without those meetings, alcohol consumption did not decrease. On the contrary, the frequency of consuming alcohol had increased in 2020 when most meetings were not possible due to COVID-19 social distancing measures. Moreover, a survey that year found that most South Koreans preferred to drink beer at home.