It was in the Sillim district, south of Seoul, that Mr. Ko chose to open his cafe in 2016. At the time, only two other bars lined the alley, a few hundred meters away. Eight years later, the owner must face fierce competition: more than fifty brands have emerged nearby. In the South Korean capital, the density of cafes has now reached a dizzying level, rivaling that of Paris – which has nearly 5,000 bars and cafes for a population of 2.11 million, according to the latest report on food in the City of Lights.
But where does this Korean passion for the little black guy come from? A national survey reveals that Koreans now eat more rice than rice. Coffee was introduced to the peninsula at the end of the 19th century.e century. First considered a luxury product, it became popular among the middle and working classes after the arrival of its powdered version in American military rations during the war. The local industry then began to produce its own instant mixes, which were quickly adopted by a population in search of a shot energy, as detailed in an article in the New York Times.
The trend gained momentum with the arrival of Starbucks in the late 1990s. The Americano became one of the best-selling drinks. Its frozen version – the “ah-ah» in Korean – remains a national cultural symbol, omnipresent on the streets and in the hands of young adults. It’s no wonder that aspiring entrepreneurs have spotted a good deal, dreaming of swapping the 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. routine for managing their sweet coffee Instagrammable.
Since 2019, the number of establishments has doubled in the country: 80,000 are currently listed nationally, including nearly 10,000 in Seoul alone (for 10.2 million inhabitants). Owners attribute this boom to the search for alternatives to a saturated job market, as well as the popular craze for caffeinated drinks, desserts and ambiance. cozy. Opening your own brand remains more financially accessible than setting up a restaurant and Korean regulations do not require a special barista license. Which reinforces the illusion of easy profits.
Hours of work for a little more than a minimum wage
“People see long queues forming outside other cafes and think it’s easy to manage oneexplains Mr. Ko, also president of the National Organization of Café Owners’ Cooperatives. But the work is exhausting and the profits are meager.” On average, owners earn between 2,700 and 3,400 dollars per month (around 2,300 to 2,900 euros), barely above the minimum wage, for thirteen hours of daily work.
Yet in Korean culture, cafes play a special role: they provide a space in which to hang out, away from the small, cramped apartments where extended families live. Difficult to invite over due to lack of space and privacy. Couples therefore enjoy a few hours at the café after a romantic dinner, friends meet there regularly and students revise until late at night.
Success also happens online
But in a society dominated by social networks, serving a quality black guy is no longer enough. The success of a brand depends on the polished images of its products and the number of cumulative views. Instagrammable decor trends spread in the blink of an eye, resulting in establishments with similar aesthetics.
For Choi Seon-wook, a consultant who has supported the opening of a thousand cafes, many cafe owners pay little attention to the quality of the drinks. This is partly explained by the lack of training: “People starting out have never run a café, or their experience is limited to part-time work as a barista»he explains.
In France too, we are witnessing a real boom in coffee shops. According to the Café Collective, their number has jumped by 74% since 2010, and sales by 140%. “The French have been accustomed to consuming “coffee shop” with consumption throughout the day… It is no longer just the traditional morning coffee but gourmet drinks, hot, cold, milky, with less and less coffee in them”confided Frédéric Pastur, French general manager of Columbus Café, to AFP in June. You just have to walk around Paris to come across one of these new fashionable places, which promise tranquility and conviviality around a drink whose cost can easily exceed five euros.
But in Korea, all these coffees don’t last. Faced with pressure from low-cost franchises and the soaring cost of living and the price of grain, some are forced to close their doors. On YouTube, former cafe owners dissuade their listeners from getting started. Kwon Seong-jun, a celebrity chef who won Netflix’s hit cooking show Culinary Class Wars, recounts his own failure. The Eldorado of vanilla lattes turns out to be, for some, a bitter mirage.
