Ahead of Christmas, Sungsimdang's seasonal limited cakes in Daejeon are selling on the secondhand transaction market for more than two to three times the list price, an unusual phenomenon. It appears to be driven by demand to avoid long lines.
On the 24th, posts offering to buy and sell Sungsimdang's "Strawberry Siru" for 100,000 to 150,000 won have been appearing one after another on secondhand transaction platforms. That is two to three times more expensive than the list price of 49,000 won. Posts offering "proxy purchases," saying they will buy it directly from Sungsimdang, are quickly being marked as "transaction completed" right after being posted.
Sungsimdang has been selling "Strawberry Siru," a winter limited menu item, since the day before. In front of the store, a line stretching more than 500 meters formed from early morning. The wait time sometimes exceeded seven hours.
Sungsimdang is showcasing a variety of strawberry products, including the strawberry tower tart and maison cake, but the popularity of the "Strawberry Siru 2.3 kg," sold only at the main store, stands out. Word of mouth that it offers better value than other bakery cakes and looks good has driven a surge in demand.
This has given rise to "resellers" who flip the product. There is also an assessment that resellers helped drive the price of Strawberry Siru sky-high on secondhand transaction platforms.
In response, Sungsimdang announced on its website a "ban on proxy purchases and reselling" and moved to act. Sungsimdang warned of risks such as spoilage, hygiene issues, and damage that may occur during unauthorized proxy purchases and said it strictly bans transactions outside official stores.
A Sungsimdang official said, "Given the product's characteristics, freshness is important, so please refrain from purchasing through unofficial channels."
However, the retail industry expects the shortage and premium transactions to continue from Christmas through the year-end and New Year holidays.