The famous bakery 'Mildo' in Seongsu-dong, Seoul, has given a boost to the performance of Maeil Dairies' subsidiary, M's Bakers. M's Bakers is a dessert-specialized subsidiary of Maeil Dairies that operates both B2B (business-to-business) and B2C (business-to-consumer) transactions. Mildo is renowned for its bread in Seongsu-dong, Seoul.
According to the Financial Supervisory Service, M's Bakers reported sales of 40.1 billion won last year, more than doubling its sales of 19.8 billion won from the previous year. Operating profit reached 2.2 billion won, compared to 800 million won the previous year.
Mildo is popular for its moist and light-textured bread and its rich bread made with whipped cream for a soft texture. Mildo has increased its number of stores over the past year.
Last year, it opened locations in Hyundai Department Store's Trade Center and Apgujeong flagship store, and also opened in Shinsegae South City. In March of this year, it opened in Lotte Department Store's Jamsil location, and it plans to start operations in NewCore Gangnam in May.
The background to the aggressive expansion of stores is Maeil Dairies. Maeil Dairies' subsidiary, M's Bakers, acquired Mildo in April last year. Since the acquisition, the bread made by Mildo has also been sold at Paul Bassett stores.
A space has also been set up at the Paul Bassett store in Sangha Farm operated by Maeil Dairies. This is for consumers to have a simple meal along with coffee. At the time of the acquisition, a Maeil Dairies official noted, "I expect that we can create synergies with not only Maeil Dairies but also Paul Bassett and Sangha Farm."
In the baking industry, it is believed that the market for meal replacement bread, such as Mildo's bread, will grow. This is due to the diversification of the concept of bread.
An industry official said, "In our country, the cream bread market grew based on cream bread, so the concepts of meal replacement bread and dessert bread were mixed. Recently, a distinct market for meal replacement bread has been established."
Market research firm Euromonitor forecasts that the market size for plain bread products like bread and bagels in South Korea will grow to 864.5 billion won next year. This represents a 33.3% increase compared to 648.4 billion won in 2018.
As a result, a competition for upscale bread that represents meal replacement bread is also underway. A notable example is the fresh bread specialty store 'Whiterie.' Whiterie started in Banpo-dong, Seocho-gu, Seoul, and has begun a franchise business. Its fresh bread made with self-blended flour, fermented butter, and bamboo salt is its signature product.
The artisan bread made by the F&B startup 'All to Relicious' is also one of Mildo's competitors. Artisan bread is characterized by the use of the 'tangzhong method,' which involves adding cooked dough to the main dough to create bread. As a result, there are many evaluations that it has achieved a texture that is both soft and moist, extending even to the edges of the bread. Recently, artisan bread has expanded its sales channels through e-commerce platforms like Kurly.
An industry official said, "Referring to the Japanese market, where the bread culture has developed, the meal replacement bakery market size is expected to grow larger," and added, "Households that prefer bread over rice are increasing due to the westernization of dietary habits."
According to a survey by the Japan Economic Research Institute, the bakery market size in Japan is projected to reach 1.5755 trillion yen in 2023, representing a 0.1% growth compared to 2022. The institute expects it to grow to 1.609 trillion yen by 2026.