Traditional Korean tea chain proving to be a hit in Japan

A take-out drink store named Ogada opened July 7 at the central entrance of Shinjuku Station in Tokyo. Having a signboard reading "Ogada hanbangcha," the store is small without a single table.

Staff try to lure customers by saying they are selling a popular traditional tea from Korea. Two Japanese women in their 30s ordered ginger tea and pumpkin corn silk tea. Taking a sip, they said, "Oishi (Delicious)!"

Ogada CEO Choi Seung-yoon looked at them and smiled. Aiming to beat Starbucks coffee with Korean traditional tea, he opened a 7-square meter store in central Seoul in July 2009. The number of Korean branches of Ogada has jumped to 60, and Choi eyed a foreign market for the first time.

The Dong-A Ilbo spoke to Choi at a store in southern Seoul on July 19. He said, "I had expected to struggle in Japan but an average of 300 cups are being sold every day. It`s selling better than I had expected."

When Choi decided to do business in Japan, he was serious about what kind of menu he would go for. In August last year at a concert by Korean Wave singers, he hosted a tasting event for 3,000 people.

Choi also hosted a tasting event for Japanese tourists in Seoul`s Myeongdong district and was a sponsor at the Seoul Nuclear Security Summit in March this year. He conducted a survey whenever he hosted the tasting event. Consequently, he could pick 25 menu items the Japanese liked the most among 40.

Taking traditional Korean tea to Japan was like an adventure because of different institutions and culture. Schisandra, mugwort and turkey tail mushroom fall into a food category in Korea, but are classified as medicine in Japan. Thus the customs process and the store opening date was delayed.

"It was difficult work but I learned much from it," Choi said, adding, "I would have succeeded easily had I opened the store in Korean towns or places popular for the Korean Wave. But this wouldn`t have meant true globalization of Korean food. I want to make it work in localized places".

Choi will open a big cafe in Tokyo in October, and advance into Taiwan by the end of the year. He plans to make inroads into Thailand next year.

On his next target, he said, "I hope Korean traditional tea becomes internationally popular as coffee."

baron@donga.com