ITC Bingo! is getting on board with the craze for Korean culture in India by introducing new Korean-flavored chips. They teamed up with famous South Korean singer Aoora to make a catchy new song called "Maeun Maeun.".
Lots of people in India are really into Korean stuff like K-dramas and K-pop, so ITC Bingo! decided to bring Korean flavours to their snacks. They're the first ones in India to do it. These new chips come in three types: original style, hashtags, and potato chips.
Since 2020, more and more Indians have been getting into Korean things like music, skincare, and especially food. About 30% of young women are interested in trying new Korean flavours, according to a report.
This global love for Korean entertainment and culture is called the "Hallyu" or Korean Wave.
Suresh Chand, who works in marketing at ITC Foods, says they noticed that a lot of people in India want Korean flavours in their snacks. So, they made these spicy, tangy Korean-style chips just for them. They're sure people will love the flavours tailored to Indian tastes.
Korean food like rice dishes and ramen noodles has become popular in India too. The market for Korean noodles went from being worth a small amount in 2021 to over Rs 65 crore in 2023. Now, ITC is joining in with their Korean-flavored snacks.
To make their launch even more exciting, Bingo! teamed up with a popular South Korean singer to make a new song called "Spicy, Spicy.". The music video is meant to capture the fun vibe of Bingo! and appeal to fans of Korean pop culture. They hope this collaboration will create a buzz around their new chips.
Park Min-jun, also known as Aoora, has become popular in India since he appeared on the reality show Bigg Boss this season. Host Salman Khan introduced him as the 'biggest K-pop sensation in India'.
Bingo! is not just stopping at the music video. They're planning a big advertising campaign to get people excited. They'll use social media to build up hype before the launch, and they'll also be on music platforms like Spotify and YouTube. You'll see ads for the song on TV too. They've even teamed up with about 15 influencers, including Koreans living in India, Indians in Korea, and food vloggers, to let everyone know about the new chips.
A spokesperson from Tonic Worldwide said, “This collaboration between Bingo and Aoora is twice as spicy. ‘Maeun’ means spicy in Korean. The new flavour is so spicy that we had to add another ‘Maeun’! As an agency, we are obsessed with the consumer, their behaviour, so when it came to launching a product that is for Gen-Z, we wanted to do it in their language. K-Pop is way beyond a music genre for the audience; it’s a part of their culture. The catchy song captures the core essence of the new flavours of Korean style. Super excited!”
