K-pop group BTS in Coway's ad / Courtesy of Coway

By Kim Jae-heun

K-pop idol group BTS is proving to be an effective marketing tool across industries, as a series of companies that hired the boy group as brand ambassadors saw their sales increase sharply, according to company officials Tuesday.

McDonald's Korea, which introduced the BTS Set in collaboration with BTS last year, saw its sales jump 9.7 percent to 867.9 billion won ($693.4 million) from 2020.

"If we combine the revenue created both by restaurants directly managed by the company and our franchisees, the figure reaches 1 trillion won. It is the all-time record since McDonald's entered the Korean market. The BTS Set sold nearly 1.45 million here and it contributed much in achieving our largest sales in history," a McDonald's Korea official said.

Home appliance maker Coway also benefited much from having BTS appear in its commercial. Last year, its revenue soared by 13.2 percent year-on-year to reach 3.6 trillion won. Its overseas sales surpassed 1 trillion won for the first time too, thanks to BTS' high profile abroad.

Coway achieved great success in Southeast Asia, in particular, where BTS has a large fandom. Bloomberg reported that Coway's sales showed a significant jump in Malaysia and the United States since April 2021 after featuring the group in its commercial.

BTS member Jungkook holds Teazen's Kombucha during his live video streaming with fans in February 2021. Screenshot from V-Live

Local tea brand Teazen did not hire BTS as its advertising model, but after BTS member Jungkook drank its Kombucha product during a live video steam in February 2021, Teazen's sales instantly grew fivefold. At the time Jungkook said Teazen's Kombucha was his favorite.

This helped the company to double its sales in 2021, and local private equity fund VIG Partners decided to acquire the tea brand for 80 billion won on Tuesday.

"Thanks to the BTS fan club, our Kombucha's popularity grew explosively abroad. We are planning to export our products to 50 countries and become a global tea maker in the near future," a Teazen official said.