Clark Park, a 35-year-old YouTuber, is one of many people in South Korea fed up with high food prices.
That’s why he grabbed his camera and joined a huge throng of shoppers clamoring for cheap fried chicken one August morning at Homeplus, a hypermarket chain that had just slashed 12% off its already-heavily discounted prices.
“There were already over 50 people lined up,” Park told CNN Business, adding that many arrived early and waited well over an hour. “We all ran together to the deli as soon as it opened. That’s when I felt the craze of fried chicken.”
Fried chicken has long been a favorite of consumers in South Korea — and now it also underscores the country’s inflationary woes, with food prices across the board weighing more on wallets lately.
The average cost of fried chicken in South Korea was up 11.4% in August compared to the same month a year ago, outpacing price jumps of other popular dining items such as kimchi stew or beef barbecue, according to government data.