Ajumma's Journal: pepero

Did you know...?

Pepero didn't originate from Korea. It's been sold in the Japanese market as Pocky since 1965?
In some elementary school,s classmates exchange Pepero gifts at 11: 11 am on Nov 11? ( the figures lined up look like the chocolate covered snacks lined up)
The celebration started off in 1994 in a middle school for girls in Busan.
Female classmates traded them to express their fond wish to be as slender as Pepero. ( This is version 1 of its origins)
It may be a brainwave of the Lotte marketing department ( Version 2 of origins)
Some schools have made it official policy to ban the exchange of such gifts on Nov 11 as they deem it a distraction.
Even adult Koreans celebrate Pepero Day - it's a relatively cheap way to earn brownie points with your colleagues, employees or employers.
It's serious business - Sales one year amounted to 44 billion won! Since 2000, sales have experienced double-digit growth.
Lotte has even dedicated a website to PD with a new theme song each year.
Merchandise related to PD just keep getting bigger and more varied - earrings, film screenings, notebooks etc.
In a bid to beef up rice consumption, the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation ( a.k.a Nonghyup) are trying to promote Nov 11 instead as "Garaetteok Day" ( Rice-cake Day).