According to N.News on January 5th, South Korean tobacco company KT&G is accelerating its expansion in overseas markets through its cigarette brands "ESSE" and "RAISON." In the third quarter of 2024, KT&G's sales in the overseas tobacco market reached 419.7 billion Korean won, an increase of 30.5% compared to the previous year. It is expected that the overseas business profits of cigarettes and e-cigarettes will increase by approximately 50% in 2024.
KT&G pointed out that its key growth came from increased sales of the ultra-slim cigarette brands "ESSE," "RAISON," and "Bohem," with particular strong performance in the Indonesian market. In 2023, sales of "ESSE" in Indonesia reached 9.6 billion units. The flagship product "ESSE Berry Pop," which was launched in 2017, has been very popular, with sales reaching 205 million units within just one year of its launch.
In addition, in the Mongolian market, KT&G has surpassed Japan Tobacco International (JTI) to take the lead in market share. In 2023, their market share exceeded 50%, making it the first country where the company's market share overseas has exceeded 50%. The export volume has also increased from 300 million in 2011 to 2.35 billion in 2023, an increase of approximately 7.8 times.
KT&G is also expanding its presence in the European market. In 2024, the company launched two new "ESSE" products in Romania and entered the markets of Spain and Portugal. In Kazakhstan, KT&G ranks third in market share, while it holds the top position in Tajikistan.
Benefiting from the strong performance of its overseas business, KT&G plans to establish localized production facilities. The company is constructing a new factory in Surabaya, East Java Province, Indonesia, covering an area of 190,000 square meters. It is scheduled to be completed in 2026 with an annual production capacity of up to 21 billion cigarettes. Additionally, a plant of approximately 200,000 square meters in Almaty, Kazakhstan is also set to begin production in 2026.
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