The secret of convenient store’s best-selling product by Chinese visitors, ‘Ready Q’

Handok (Chairman Youngjin Kim)’s sweet hangover solution ‘Ready Q-chew’ is establishing itself as the new representative of Korean wave for Chinese.

According to the announcement by GS Retail on the 24th, the product that was bought the most at GS 25 convenient store by Chinese with UnionPay credit card, the biggest credit card company in China, from January to October this year turned out to be ‘Ready Q-chew’.

Ready Q-chew is not only popular amongst Chinese visitors in Korea but also in China itself. Popular Chinese SNS, such as Weibo and WeChat introduce Ready Q-chew as Haejudang (Jie Jiu Tang) which means hangover solution candy, adding to the popularity of the product. Chinese power blogger Wanghong also mentioned Ready Q-chew as the must buy item in Korea. 

The secret for popularity of ‘Ready Q-chew’ lies in its formulation and ingredients. For Chinese who are used to hard and bitter tasting pills of hangover cures, the soft, mango-flavored jelly type hangover treat came as a sensation. Also, the fact that Ready Q-chew contains curcumin or turmeric, a substance well known amongst Chinese, contributed to its popularity.

The appearance of Ready Q-chew in gold colored, handy size packaging with a smiley face print on it attracts the attention of Chinese visitors. Gold color is traditionally favored by Chinese and the packaging is small enough to fit in purses, making the product extra suitable as a returning gift.

With regards to this phenomenon, Misuk Park, the director of Handok consumer health business sector mentioned that “Ready Q-chew is growing at an astonishing rate, gaining popularity amongst Chinese visitors. It is also attracting attention of young Koreans, adding to its sales. I hope that many people can enjoy the festive season full of meetings and gatherings with the help of sweet hangover solution Ready Q-chew”. 

Ready Q-chew, launched in 2014, is the first jelly type hangover treatment in Korea. It has a sweet mango flavor and a gummy texture. It contains ‘Teracumin’ which has enhanced oral absorption rate of curcumin, extracted from turmeric.