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🇰🇷 South Korea /Economy & Trade

A Twosome Place takes Korean desserts to the U.S., opening its first Virginia store in October

From Dong-A Ilbo · () Korean

Translated from Korean and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Named sources New plan
  • South Korean cafe chain Twosome Place plans to open its first U.S. store in Alexandria, Virginia, in October.
  • The company will compete through Korean-style cakes and a coffee-and-dessert pairing concept rather than coffee alone.
  • It plans to expand across the Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia region, with Japan under consideration as its next overseas market.

Twosome Place is taking its Korean desserts to the U.S. mainstream market, betting that cakes, rather than coffee, will set it apart from established global cafe brands.

The South Korean chain said at a press conference in Seoul that it will open its first U.S. store in October on King Street in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia. The location sits near Washington, D.C., in an area with concentrated residential, business and tourism demand. The company chose Alexandria after considering major markets including Los Angeles, New York, Dallas and Atlanta.

We considered that it is a sophisticated area with four distinct seasons and high income levels.

· Moon Young-jooTwosome Place’s CEO explained why the company selected Alexandria for its first U.S. store.

CEO Moon Young-joo called the area a place that could represent the U.S. mainstream while serving as a base for future expansion. The company also cited the region’s four distinct seasons and relatively high income levels. “We considered that it is a sophisticated area with four distinct seasons and high income levels,” Moon said.

If we had entered overseas markets with coffee alone, it would have been relatively difficult to differentiate ourselves.

· Kim Shin-youngThe company’s COO described why Korean-style cakes will anchor its U.S. strategy.

Twosome Place plans to promote a pairing culture built around Korean cakes and coffee. It says Korean cakes, generally based on whipped cream and lighter in sweetness, offer a contrast with the heavier, richer butter- and cheese-based cakes common in the U.S. COO Kim Shin-young said coffee alone would have been harder to differentiate overseas, while Korean cakes could compete as a premium product.

The Alexandria store will operate as an all-day cafe serving meals and desserts from morning through evening. After about two years of local tasting, the company adjusted the size and flavors of signature products such as “Scho-saeng” and “Abak,” and plans to add ingredients including black sesame, injeolmi and dalgona. Prices will sit at the premium cafe level, with beverages somewhat more expensive than Starbucks and overall prices 10% to 20% above those in South Korea.

We did not enter the U.S. to raise corporate value.

· Kim Shin-youngThe COO rejected the view that the expansion was driven primarily by Carlyle Group’s planned exit.

A local corporation will operate the U.S. business directly. Twosome Place aims to build a presence across the DMV region and eventually open more than 10 company-owned stores on the East Coast, while considering franchising after operations become stable and profitable. Japan is also being considered as a future market. The company rejected suggestions that the U.S. expansion primarily serves an exit by majority owner Carlyle Group, saying it reflects limited room for further domestic expansion and represents a long-term investment.

Entering the U.S. requires considerable investment, so it is difficult to raise corporate value in the short term.

· Moon Young-jooThe CEO characterized the U.S. expansion as a long-term business.
About this summary

Originally published by Dong-A Ilbo in Korean. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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