Bacchus D annual sales top 200 billion won

By Choi Sung-jin

Annual sales of Bacchus D, Korea’s oldest and best-known restorative drink, topped 200 billion won ($165 million) last year.

It is the first time a product made and sold by a Korean pharmaceutical company has topped this landmark amount, says its maker, Dong-A Pharmaceutical. It took Dong-A 21 years to double its sales since it recorded 100 billion won in 1994.

In July 2011, the reinvigorating drink was categorized as a sanitary aid, or medical extraversion, exerting a much lighter influence on the body than medicinal products that treat and prevent diseases.

The drink has since been sold at convenience stores and supermarkets, too, company officials said, explaining the recent surge in sales.

Introduced in 1961 as a tablet, the pick-me-up took its current form two years later. About 19.2 billion bottles have been sold so far, worth 4.2 trillion won.