A KyoChon chicken outlet in New York. The South Korean franchise has opened several stores in New York and California.
That’s because she’s not in Korea, but Kyochon’s newest U.S. outlet on 319 Fifth Avenue in the heart of midtown Manhattan.
“I guess I can’t have everything, but it’s awesome to enjoy Kyochon just blocks away from where I live,” says Shin, a Korean-American who first tried the fried chicken during her visit to Seoul a few years ago.
The popular Korean wing franchise, which opened its modern $2-million, two-story space, already has several restaurants in New York and California. But the latest addition is located right smack in the center of Manhattan, a positioning aimed at targeting more American customers.
“We’re going after the mainstream market,” Kyochon CEO Kwon Won-kang said when the new shop was launched earlier last month. “We’re not going to limit our accessibility.”
Just like the chicken joint, other Korean brands are starting to move away from the traditional “Koreatown marketing strategy” toward a wider U.S. consumer base.
More and more established labels in a range of industries are taking a stab at introducing their businesses to everyday American shoppers.
Most recently, Amore Pacific launched its premium skincare brand Sulwhasoo at Bergdorf Goodman, one of New York’s most luxurious retailers.
The company is now selling 12 different cosmetics products under the herbal medicine line.
For more casual consumers, Face Shop earlier began selling its mask sheets at Walgreen’s, a mega drugstore chain with more than 6,500 stores nationwide.
Besides the cosmetics names, Hankook Chinaware recently opened its first showroom in Manhattan, while premium luxury brand MCM kicked off sales at New York City’s Saks Fifth Avenue.
“Korean brands are clearly making inroads into the core U.S. market,” said Kim Joo-hwan, a marketing consultant at Liberty, a Manhattan-based agency. – read more at The Korea Times…
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