Yeo Myeong-rang, a 25-year food industry veteran and CEO of Bomworks
'Desserts that fill the heart must keep changing'
The rise of obesity drugs seen as the next big force shaping dessert trends
"When consumers develop a curiosity for a new sensation, that is the moment a trend catches its current."
Yeo Myeong-rang, CEO of Bomworks, distilled the secret behind today's most popular desserts into that single sentence during a session presentation at the Consumer Forum 2027: K-Sweet Festa, held Thursday afternoon at Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP) in Jung-gu, Seoul.
Yeo is a 25-year food industry veteran who previously served as head of marketing at Lotte Chilsung Beverage and as head of the food business division at Lotte Wellfood, leading the development of popular products including Saero soju, Chilsung Cider Zero, Pepsi Zero and Kkaesukang. Speaking under the theme "Why Do Desserts Trend — and Why Do They Fade?", Yeo presented an analysis of dessert trends that rose and fell over the past year.
Yeo opened by arguing that even as Koreans are eating less overall, the act of eating has grown more emotionally significant. An analysis of annual SNS reactions on Instagram, TikTok and other platforms showed that the number of people reporting happiness while eating has risen sharply since 2019. "The biggest contributor to that shift is the dessert industry," Yeo said. "Consumers are not reaching for desserts to fill their stomachs — they are reaching for them to fill their hearts." Yeo added that satisfying that emotional need requires delivering happiness and fun, and that the same stimulus quickly loses its effect. "You have to keep changing to keep them satisfied," Yeo said.
As a result, this year has seen the rise of what Yeo called "desserts engineered with layered sensation" — a progression running from Dubai chocolate to the Dubai Chewy Cookie and then to fruit glutinous rice cake. "Dubai chocolate made you feel multiple sensations at once: the snap of the outer shell, the smoothness and nuttiness of pistachio, and the crunch of kataifi," Yeo explained. "The Dubai Chewy Cookie added marshmallow to the dough, giving you that chewy, stretchy texture on top of everything else." Yeo noted that the currently trending fruit glutinous rice cake offers yet another dimension — the tartness of fresh fruit, the sweetness of yogurt, and a visually striking cross-section when split in half.
Yeo said an analysis of SNS posts using words such as "chewy," "dense" and "crispy" showed that related content still grew by more than 20 percent year on year, and forecast that demand for varied textures would continue for now.
Yeo also stressed the importance of mapping out the consumer experience journey to prevent shoppers from drifting to alternatives. "In my experience, a waiting-line or sold-out strategy works best when it happens no more than three times," Yeo said. "Beyond that, consumers whose feelings have been hurt start looking for substitutes."
Looking ahead, Yeo identified the growing use of obesity drugs as the key force shaping the next wave of dessert trends. "According to recent research, 11 percent of 2,000 respondents said they were taking Mounjaro or Wegovy," Yeo said. "People cannot stay on these drugs indefinitely, and there is growing concern about how to manage appetite once they stop." Yeo added that a solution is within reach for the industry. "Sweet desserts are something everyone wants," Yeo said. "There will be a need for healthier desserts that address the concerns of people coming off these medications."
soho0902@heraldcorp.com
