Hitejinro launches new lager Kelly to challenge OB

Hitejinro, a major local brewer, has launched a new lager called Kelly as part of efforts to regain its No. 1 status from its rival Oriental Brewery (OB), according to company officials Thursday.

Kelly is Hitejinro’s first new product since 2019 when it introduced Terra, another lager. The name Kelly is short for “keep naturally,” which means minimizing the artificial taste of the product and making it as natural as possible. The lager is made with Danish barley that has been germinated for 24 hours longer than other barleys.

“We made Kelly based on our long-term research on consumers’ expectations and demands in the regular beer market. Kelly will create a strong sensation in the local market and help us recapture our top position,” Hitejinro CEO Kim In-gyu said during a press conference held in Seoul.

According to market research firm Nielsen Korea, Oriental Brewery’s lager Cass topped the domestic beer market with a 43 percent market share as of January this year, while Terra had an 18.6 percent share.

Hitejinro maintained its No. 1 position in the domestic market with its Hite beer brand until 2012 when it fell to second place behind OB. Hitejinro later launched Terra to overturn the beer market in 2019, selling over 3.6 billion bottles as of February. Terra’s average annual growth rate since its launch has stayed around 23 percent.

However, COVID-19 hit the country in 2020 and Hitejinro did not enjoy as many sales at restaurants, bars and nightclubs as it might have expected otherwise.