YouTuber’s pop-up thrills buyers, but small bakeries cry foul

People line up in front of ETF Bakery, a pop-up store launched by Jeon Seok-jae, who runs the YouTube channel Syuka World, in Seongdong District, Seoul, Sunday. Yonhap

A bargain-priced bread introduced by a YouTuber with 3.61 million subscribers has set off a debate in Korea, drawing criticism from small shop owners who call the price unsustainable even as consumers welcome its affordability.

Jeon Seok-jae, 46, who runs a finance-focused YouTube channel called Syuka World, opened a pop-up store called ETF Bakery in eastern Seoul on Saturday. Named after exchange-traded funds, one of the channel’s main topics, the bakery offers 35 types of bread and cakes, including salt bread and bagels, each priced at 990 won ($0.71).

While prices vary by franchise and neighborhood bakery, salt bread and bagels in Korea are typically priced in the 3,000 to 4,000 won range, making Jeon’s offerings considerably more affordable.

Other items, including loaves of bread, ciabatta and peach cake, were also sold well below market rates. For instance, a pollock roe baguette cost 2,450 won at the pop-up store, compared to 3,800 won at Sungsimdang in Daejeon — a popular bakery known for its reasonable prices.

Jeon Seok-jae, who runs the YouTube channel Syuka World, introduces his bread during a livestream on Thursday. Captured from the YouTube channel Money Comics

Jeon, who last month posted a video about the rising cost of bread, said he was able to reduce prices by sourcing ingredients directly from producers and simplifying bread shapes and packaging. “This project was designed to counter the surge in bread prices,” he said.

The low-cost offerings quickly drew a favorable response from consumers. In a video where Jeon sampled his own bread, commenters wrote, “I hope this doesn’t end as just a pop-up store but grows into a sustainable business,” and “I wish this project succeeds so bread prices can come down.”

Kim Dong-young, 28, told The Korea Times he thinks the project is meaningful as a bread lover who often has a bagel for breakfast.

“These days, even at big franchises, a single bagel costs around 3,000 to 4,000 won. But bread itself can still be priced at 1,000 to 2,000 won. If it were more accessible, it could be a good breakfast option for office workers,” Kim said.

But small business owners quickly pushed back. “I don’t even run a bakery, but this feels unfair,” one user wrote on an online forum with more than 1.8 million self-employed members. “Jeon can sell bread cheaply because he’s promoting himself as a popular YouTuber, and it’s just a one-time pop-up, but now people act like all bakeries have been overcharging. It’s disheartening.”

Salt bread is displayed at the ETF Bakery pop-up store in Seongdong District, Seoul, Sunday. Yonhap

Bae Sun-young, 49, who has worked in the bakery business for 20 years, told The Korea Times that selling bread this cheaply is only possible because the YouTuber doesn’t depend on it for a living.

“The 990-won price ignores costs like labor, rent and overhead. It only reflects ingredients, which likely aren’t top quality,” Bae said.

She closed her bakery in May amid a sluggish economy, falling sales, a rent hike and rising ingredient costs, which were especially burdensome as she insisted on using quality products.

Bae said running a bakery involves enormous expenses, noting that even 20 days of operation a month can lead to electricity bills of around 1 million won, and that equipment such as ovens can cost between 50 and 100 million won.

She added that when taxes and labor costs are factored in, selling bread at ultra-low prices may work for a YouTuber trying to gain attention, but it’s simply not feasible for someone who depends on it for a living.

Bae said she hasn’t read the sharp online comments accusing bakeries of overpricing, but nonetheless expressed frustration over public criticism that overlooks the financial realities small business owners face.

Facing mounting criticism, Jeon ultimately issued an apology.

“I thought people would be happy if I made cheap bread, but that wasn’t the case. I’m sorry,” Jeon said during his Sunday livestream. “I’ve never criticized small business owners — I’m one myself. I only meant to talk about the structural issues behind bread prices, but it was interpreted differently. If anyone felt offended, I believe it was a misunderstanding.”