Sulbing

What Sulbing does

Sulbing (설빙) is a Korean dessert cafe chain specializing in shaved ice (bingsu) and related Korean traditional sweets, founded circa 2010 and officially incorporated as (주)설빙 in 2013. The company operates a franchise-based business model with more than 250 retail locations across Korean provinces and international Master Franchise stores in five countries (USA, Japan, Cambodia, Malaysia, Australia). Core products include signature Injeolmi (Korean rice cake) shaved ice in 20+ varieties, coffee and beverages (Americano, Cafe Latte, Injeolmi Latte, Ube Latte, smoothies, ades, traditional teas), and ancillary side dishes (croffles, toasts, tteokbokki, fish-shaped buns, tiramisu cake).

The company's underlying technology platform is conventional rather than proprietary: it consists of a consumer-facing mobile application with ordering, payment (Kakao Pay, Naver Pay, Toss Pay, Samsung Pay), mobile gift voucher redemption, and stamp-based loyalty functions; a franchisee-only management portal at franchiser.sulbing.com for training materials, recipes, and operations; an e-commerce presence on Naver Commerce, KakaoTalk Gift, Gmarket, and 11th Street; and a branded merchandise shop at sulbingshop.com. No public API, SDK, or AI/ML capabilities are disclosed.

Revenue is generated through a combination of one-time franchise fees (KRW 18M per store inclusive of franchise fee, training, and performance bond), equipment and interior build-out revenue (~KRW 176M per new store), ongoing royalties on franchise store sales (rate not publicly disclosed), and retail sales at corporate or franchised locations. Average disclosed franchise store monthly sales are approximately KRW 40M with an estimated 18-21% store-level profit margin. The customer base is split between individual end-consumers purchasing dessert and beverage items (primary segment) and franchise partners operating Sulbing stores (secondary B2B segment). Domestic franchise recruitment is supported by weekly seminars in Seoul and Busan and a loan partnership with Hana Bank offering up to KRW 200M at 4.468%+ rates.

Name

Sulbing

Legal name

(주)설빙

Website

https://sulbing.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Sulbing (설빙) is a Korean dessert cafe franchise specializing in shaved ice (bingsu) and Korean traditional sweets, operating 250+ locations domestically and through Master Franchise partnerships in USA, Japan, Cambodia, Malaysia, and Australia, serving individual consumers and franchise partners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Dessert Cafe Franchise

NAICS

Food and Beverage Retailers (445), Specialty Food Retailers (4452)

SIC

Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810), Ice Cream & Frozen Desserts (2024)

akta.pro primary industry

Shaved Ice, Snow Cones & Italian Ice Shops (THAFAGAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

Dessert Cafes (Coffee + Desserts) (THAFADAH)

Keywords

• Korean shaved ice
• Dessert cafe franchise
• Bingsu desserts
• Korean sweets cafe
• Specialty coffee beverages

Headquarters

HQ city

Seoul

HQ country

South Korea

HQ region

Asia

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Franchise Fees: Sulbing generates revenue through franchise fees including an upfront franchise fee of 10,000 thousand KRW, training fee of 3,000 thousand KRW, and performance bond of 5,000 thousand KRW (total 18,000 thousand KRW). Additionally, equipment, signage, furniture, and interior costs of approximately 340,000 thousand KRW are paid by franchisees.
2. Retail Store Sales: The primary revenue stream comes from sales at franchised and corporate-owned retail dessert cafe locations across Korea and international markets, offering shaved ice desserts, Korean traditional sweets, coffee, beverages, and side dishes.
3. Mobile Gift Cards and Coupons: Sulbing sells mobile gift cards and coupons through e-commerce platforms (Gmarket, 11st) and KakaoTalk Gift. These digital products can be redeemed at physical stores or registered in the app.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Sulbing is a franchised chain of dessert cafes specializing in Korean shaved ice (bingsu) desserts, complemented by coffee and specialty beverages, Korean traditional sweets, and side dishes such as croffles and rice cakes. The company generates revenue from in-cafe retail sales at 250+ locations across Korea and international markets, alongside franchise fees from domestic and Master Franchise partners. A mobile app, mobile gift vouchers, coupons, and an online branded mall support consumer engagement and digital sales channels.

Product overview

Sulbing is a Korean dessert cafe franchise operating under a unified brand with a multi-product portfolio. The core offering centers on Korean shaved ice (bingsu/설빙) desserts — both regular bowl servings and cup-format single servings — in signature and seasonal varieties. The product range is organized into three main menu pillars: (1) 설빙 (shaved ice/bingsu) — the flagship category featuring classics like Injeolmi, Black Injeolmi, and seasonal fruit-topped varieties; (2) 음료 (beverages) — including proprietary Injeolmi Lattes, Ube Lattes, coffee, teas, smoothies, and ades; and (3) 사이드 (side dishes) — croffles, toasts, rice cake items, tteokbokki, and rice bowls. Supporting the consumer-facing business, Sulbing operates a mobile app (with ordering, payment, coupon, and loyalty/stamp functionality), a franchisee management portal, an online merchandise shop, and a franchise program for both domestic and international expansion. The company sells mobile gift vouchers through third-party platforms (KakaoTalk Gift, Gmarket, 11th Street) and accepts multiple mobile payment providers at stores.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Shaved Ice / Bingsu (설빙) Sulbing's signature Korean shaved ice (bingsu) desserts featuring milk-based shaved ice topped with ingredients such as Injeolmi (Korean rice cake with soybean powder), red bean, mango, chocolate, and seasonal fruits, available in regular bowl and cup-sized servings for individual consumers at franchise cafe locations.
• Coffee & Beverages (음료) Hot and iced coffee drinks including Americano, Cafe Latte, Cappuccino, Caramel Macchiato, and specialty lattes; non-coffee beverages including smoothies, ades, traditional Korean teas, hot chocolate, and seasonal fruit drinks, sold to individual consumers at Sulbing cafe locations.
• Side Dishes (사이드) Ancillary food items including croffles (plain, chocolate, cheese, Injeolmi-flavored), toasts, honey rice cake skewers, honey butter bread, Dubai-style croissant and rice cake, churros, fish-shaped buns, tteokbokki, fried rice, and tiramisu cake, served alongside the dessert and beverage menu at Sulbing cafe locations.
• Sulbing Domestic & Master Franchise Program Sulbing's turnkey franchise offering for domestic Korean and international Master Franchise partners, including franchisee recruitment (Seoul/Busan seminars), site selection, interior design, equipment procurement, staff training, operational support, and access to Hana Bank-backed loan programs with startup capital up to 100 million KRW and operational capital up to 200 million KRW.
• Sulbing Mobile Gift Voucher (모바일상품권) Prepaid digital gift vouchers purchased through KakaoTalk Gift, Gmarket, and 11th Street, redeemable at Sulbing physical stores or registrable in the Sulbing app for in-app ordering. Not usable on third-party delivery platforms.
• Sulbing Mobile App Sulbing's proprietary mobile app enabling individual consumers to browse menus, place pickup and delivery orders, manage and redeem digital coupons and gift vouchers, earn and track stamp loyalty rewards, and make payments via integrated Korean mobile payment methods.
• Sulbing Online Mall (설빙몰) Sulbing's branded online merchandise and product store accessible via Naver Commerce, enabling direct-to-consumer sales of branded goods.
• Sulbing Shop (설빙샵) Sulbing's official online merchandise shop selling branded Sulbing goods and products, accessible at sulbingshop.com.

Quantifiable outcome

• Average franchise store monthly sales of 40,000 thousand KRW with estimated profit margin of 18-21%

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration11 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• Red Communications (주)레드커뮤니케이션즈minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerWebsite maintenance, operation, and marketing management services.
• Kup Marketing (주)쿠프마케팅minorGTM or Marketing PartnerMobile coupon and prize distribution services for Sulbing marketing campaigns.
• Hanjin Express (한진택배)minorOthersEvent product shipping for Sulbing promotional events and prizes. Provides name, contact, and address to Hanjin for shipping purposes only.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• A Twosome Place: A Twosome Place is a leading Korean dessert cafe chain operating 1,700+ locations, offering coffee, cakes, and desserts. It directly competes with Sulbing for Korean cafe traffic and franchisee recruitment.
• Angel-in-us Coffee: Angel-in-us Coffee is a Korean specialty coffee chain competing directly with Sulbing in the cafe and dessert category, with a similar franchise-based operating model.
• Ediya Coffee: Ediya Coffee is the largest Korean coffee chain by store count (3,000+ locations) and competes directly with Sulbing for cafe customers and franchise partners across Korea.
• Hollys Coffee: Hollys Coffee is a major Korean cafe chain with 600+ locations and a broad menu including coffee, beverages, and desserts. It is a direct competitor to Sulbing in the franchise-driven Korean cafe market.
• Natuur (Korean bingsu chain): Natuur is a Korean shaved ice (bingsu) and dessert cafe chain, the most direct product-line competitor to Sulbing in the Korean bingsu specialty category.
• Caffé Bene: Caffé Bene is a major Korean-origin specialty coffee and dessert cafe chain with extensive international presence. It is the closest direct competitor to Sulbing in terms of concept (cafe + dessert) and franchise-driven international expansion model.

Broad incumbents

• Baskin-Robbins Korea: Baskin-Robbins Korea operates one of the largest ice cream and frozen dessert networks in Korea with 1,500+ stores. It competes with Sulbing for frozen dessert occasions, particularly during summer months.
• Paris Baguette: Paris Baguette is a major Korean bakery and dessert retail chain owned by SPC Group, with global presence. It overlaps with Sulbing in the dessert cafe occasion, particularly for pastries and cakes, though it is a much larger incumbent.

Regional players

• Gong Cha: Gong Cha is a major Taiwanese-origin bubble tea and beverage chain with significant Korean presence. While focused on beverages rather than bingsu, it competes for the same casual cafe-occasion consumer in Korea.

Emerging players

• Tim Hortons Korea: Tim Hortons Korea is an emerging international coffee and bakery chain rapidly expanding in Korea. It competes with Sulbing for franchisee interest and cafe-occasion consumers, though its dessert offering is more limited.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/SULBING_offcl

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Sulbing