CJ CheilJedang's chicken brand Sobaba sold out its entire supply at the "2026 Daegu Chimac Festival," Korea's largest beer-and-chicken festival, marking a commercial success. The brand was the only processed food brand to participate in an event centered on restaurant brands, expanding consumer touchpoints and demonstrating its brand competitiveness, according to the company.
CJ CheilJedang said Friday that its "Sobaba Golden Holic" booth at the Daegu Chimac Festival, held from the 1st to the 5th of this month, sold all of the roughly 10,000 sets it had prepared. As visitors flocked in toward the latter part of the event, the prepared supply was completely depleted on the final day.
At the event, Sobaba presented a set menu combining "Sobaba Golden Holic Fried Boneless Chicken" with three exclusive sauces. Thousands of visitors came to the booth over the five days, and interest was high enough to form waiting lines on the weekend.
Notably, Sobaba was the only processed chicken brand among the participating brands at this year's Chimac Festival. According to the company, the brand drew positive responses in taste and quality even while competing alongside various restaurant franchises.
The festival participation is part of an offline marketing strategy to expand opportunities for consumers to experience the brand. After operating a pop-up store in Seongsu-dong last month, CJ CheilJedang has been broadening its stage to spaces with many consumer touchpoints, such as ballparks and regional festivals, raising brand awareness.
Sobaba was first launched under the "Gourmet" brand in 2023 before launching independently as a specialized chicken brand last month. Its flagship product, "Sobaba Golden Holic," consists of two types, boneless and bone-in chicken, and is rapidly building its presence in the market, surpassing 10 billion won in cumulative sales within three months of launch.
"Through Korea's leading chimac festival, we were able to provide more consumers with the opportunity to experience Sobaba firsthand," a CJ CheilJedang official said. "We plan to continue developing it into a specialized chicken brand that goes beyond the limits of frozen chicken, leading with restaurant-level taste and quality."
