Why South Korean Kimbap Shops Are Closing Amid Rising Costs and Competition

In a modest shop in Seoul’s Changcheon Ward, 58‑year‑old owner Hwang is weighing a price increase for her classic vegetable kimbap, which sells for 3,000 won per roll, because profit margins are shrinking fast.

Hwang says a tray of 30 eggs has jumped from about 6,000 won to 9,000 won in just three months, and cucumber prices have risen from 20,000 won per 10 kg to 50,000 won after the rainy season. At the same time, the average July price for 10 sheets of dried seaweed reached 1,427 won – more than 22% above the recent average – while rice, eggs, spinach and cucumber costs rose 13%, 18%, 100% and 71% respectively.

Other expenses are climbing too. The national minimum wage is now over 10,000 won per hour, and summer electricity rates have surged by more than 31% since 2021, forcing owners like Jung, who stopped dine‑in service after COVID‑19, to rely only on takeout, and prompting Choi to lay off his only employee and install a self‑checkout machine.

The pressure shows in the numbers: Yonhap News Agency reports that the total count of kimbap shops fell from 48,898 in 2021 to 46,211 in 2023, and Kyungin Ilbo notes that closures in Gyeonggi Province rose from 151 in 2021 to 200 in 2024.

Convenience‑store chains are adding to the squeeze. Korea Economic Daily recorded that kimbap sales at GS25 jumped 42% and at 7‑Eleven rose 20% in 2024, thanks to bulk buying that lets the chains keep prices low.

Caught between soaring ingredient, labor and utility costs and fierce competition from large retailers, many traditional kimbap shops are cutting staff, limiting service to takeout, or closing entirely.

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