As high inflation persists, spending habits are changing. Instead of choosing brand-curated sets or complete products, a so-called "best value-for-money combo" trend is spreading, in which consumers mix lower-priced single items themselves to maximize satisfaction within their budgets.
According to the retail and restaurant industries on the 25th, more people are buying single-item menus and combining them on their own to eat or use. The aim is to reduce perceived costs by purchasing low-priced items individually and combining them.
A representative case is E-Land Group Eats' pizza brand "Pizzamall" slice pizza self-set. Where DelibyAshley, E-Land Group Eats' ready-to-eat brand, is located near Pizzamall, consumers create their own "a meal under 10,000 won" set by adding deli items such as chicken, bunsik, and salad in the 3,000–5,000 won range to a 2,990 won slice of pizza. According to E-Land Group Eats, Pizzamall's slice pizza sales in January this year rose 318% from a year earlier, and total sales increased 77%. During the same period, stores of DelibyAshley near Pizzamall recorded sales 30% higher than the average of other outlets.
The best value-for-money combos are also spreading at convenience stores. As a recent "value-for-money cheesecake" recipe went viral on social media (SNS), more consumers sought the key ingredients, Bba-da Coconut (Lotte Wellfood) and Greek yogurt products. According to BGF Retail, operator of convenience store CU, from January this year through the 23rd of this month, Bba-da Coconut sales increased 57.5% from a year earlier, and Greek yogurt sales rose 98.2% in the same period. The trend reflects combo consumption that recreates the taste of an expensive cheesecake by pairing low-priced snacks and yogurt.
Combinations using cup noodles are also trending, such as "convenience store dumpling soup" and "Chef Yoon Nam-no's 9,800 won convenience store scorched-rice soup." According to GS Retail, operator of GS25, from November last year through the 23rd of this month, sales of Sarigomtang cup noodles rose 31.8% from a year earlier, and frozen dumpling sales increased 14.1%. Sales of Snack Myeon and ready-to-eat scorched rice, ingredients for scorched-rice soup, rose 8.6% and 22.3%, respectively. During the same period, Seven-Eleven's cheese and frozen dumpling sales also increased 29% and 11%, respectively. All are cited as representative ingredients for cup noodle combo hacks.
This kind of consumption is also spreading in daily life. Centered on basic cosmetics at the fixed-price household goods store Asung Daiso Co., a so-called "dewy glow combo" has started to spread by word of mouth. According to Asung Daiso, from January to February this year, sales of basic skincare categories such as skin, toner, and mist rose about 190% from a year earlier, and sales of moisturizing categories such as lotion, cream, and oil increased about 70% year over year.
In the past, brand-defined set products were the standard for consumption, but now it is shifting to a structure where consumers design single-item combinations one by one to suit their budgets and preferences. A retail industry official said, "Now, rather than what you sell, how consumers combine items to eat and use them determines sales," adding, "As high inflation continues, product placement and traffic flow design premised on value-for-money combo consumption have become more important."
Inha University consumer studies professor Lee Eun-hee said, "Combo consumption both boosts the sense of self-efficacy that 'I chose and completed it' and shows that the initiative in consumption is shifting from brands to consumers," adding, "Going forward, product planning and marketing strategies that allow consumers to combine and use products freely will grow more important."