August 19, 2025
SEOUL – Korea’s craving for burgers shows no sign of abating, with the once-occasional indulgence now a regular part of many consumers’ weekly diet.
According to market research firm Euromonitor, Korea’s burger market has climbed steadily from 2.1 trillion won ($1.51 billion) in 2014 to a projected 5 trillion won this year, up from 4.2 trillion won in 2024.
Riding this swift rise, global players are digging deeper into localization, whereas local brands look outward to grow.
McDonald’s Korea is marking a historic turnaround among foreign labels.
Last year it returned to the black for the first time in eight years, posting an operating profit of 11.7 billion won and net income of 115.3 billion won. Revenue rose 11.8 percent to a record 1.25 trillion won, while total sales, including franchises, climbed 9.1 percent to 1.41 trillion won.
The company credits its success to a blend of customer-focused initiatives, steady menu innovation and leaner operations, with a key role played by the global chain’s embrace of the uniqueness of Korea’s different regions.
One standout example came last year when McDonald’s Korea relaunched the Jindo green onion cream croquette burger, made with green onions from Jindo in South Jeolla Province, following up on the product’s earlier success.
The latest hit arrived in July, with the Iksan sweet potato mozzarella burger, made with sweet potatoes from North Jeolla Province, surpassing one million sales in just nine days.
“We believe the popularity stems from using ingredients familiar to Koreans and reimagining them through McDonald’s unique know-how and style,” said an official from McDonald’s Korea.
Industry observers say the loconomy market — integrating local communities into business — is in a full-fledged growth phase, offering companies a prime opportunity to align their brand identity with local values.
Another international name, Burger King, has also charted a course to record profits. BKR, the operator of Burger King and Tim Hortons in Korea, posted a record operating profit of 384 billion won in 2024, up 60.4 percent, on revenue of 792.7 billion won.
While Burger King Korea’s bold marketing and embrace of consumer feedback — from a stunt ad declaring the end of Whopper sales to reviving discontinued items — have fueled its growth, the chain has also found success overseas with burgers and ingredients created and sourced in Korea.
The quattro cheese Whopper, developed in Korea in 2013, has been introduced to seven other countries, including the United States, China and Japan, since 2015. The company added that ingredients sourced in Korea, such as cheese buns, assorted mushrooms and bulgogi sauce, are also being supplied to overseas markets.
“We are seeing more foreign tourists visiting Korea seek out menu items unique to Burger King Korea,” a company official said, adding that the chain will continue consumer-focused menu development at a time when Korean tastes increasingly help shape global trends.
Amid the market’s expansion, Korean burger chains are beefing up their presence both at home and abroad.
Lotte Group’s food franchise arm, Lotte GRS, where burger chain Lotteria accounts for more than 70 percent of revenue, is on the verge of breaching the 1 trillion won sales mark, posting 995.4 billion won in revenue last year, up 7.7 percent, while operating profit surged 87.6 percent to 39.1 billion won.
According to Lotte GRS, product innovation — including chef collaborations like the Napoli Mafia mozzarella burger — along with store renovations and automation tools contributed to its improved earnings.
Another fast-rising domestic chain, Mom’s Touch, posted record highs last year with revenue of 417.9 billion won and operating profit of 73.4 billion won.
Launched in 2004, the chain built its reputation on affordable, high-quality chicken burgers and, in less than two decades, has become the nation’s largest burger franchise by store count, with 1,450 locations nationwide as of January.
Both domestic players, aiming to tap new market potential, now have international expansion on the table.
With an established presence in Asian markets such as Vietnam, Mongolia, Myanmar and Laos, Lotteria’s latest partnership in Malaysia, signed in August, targets 30 new stores within five years, while its first US location debuted on Monday in Fullerton, California.
At the store’s soft-opening event last week, Lotteria shared on social media photos of long queues outside the store, where customers, some shielding themselves from the heat with parasols, waited at least an hour to try the chain’s signature bulgogi, shrimp and rice burgers.
“The global influence of K-culture is likely to give the brand a strong tailwind overseas,” one industry official said, adding that Lotteria’s key advantage lies in its distinctive Korean-inspired menu.
Likewise, Mom’s Touch, which currently operates overseas stores in Mongolia, Thailand and Japan, plans to enter Laos and Cambodia in the second half of this year, with further expansion planned for Malaysia and Kazakhstan.
The chain’s Korean-style chicken burger recently found success in Japan, where its store in Shibuya, Tokyo, opened last year, attracted more than 700,000 visitors and generated over 5 billion won in sales in its first year.
In September, it plans to open its second Japan location in Harajuku, which will be the brand’s largest outlet worldwide.
“We are also exploring various models, including joint ventures, with strategies tailored to the business culture of Japanese companies,” said a Mom’s Touch official, as the chain aims to open up to five additional stores by year-end.
