The Yogurt Ladies Roll On

By Katrin Marquez 

Betwenn the complexity of the drinking culture, the prevalence of sweet potato everything and multiple levels of speech, newcomers to Korea encounter all manner of culture shock. Incoming foreigners usually prepare themselves with a culture guide or two, but one phenomenon still mystifies: the yogurt ladies.

Witnessing for the first time an ajjumma rushing past pedestrians on what can best be described, as a motorized refrigerator is a sight like none else. While these ladies may cause confusion at first, their work has a surprisingly long history in Korea.

According to an article in the Joongang Daily, an earlier version of these ladies first appear in Korea during the 1970s when outside vending machines to purchase cold drinks were rare. Because refrigeration in such circumstances was not what it is today, the Korea Yakult company saw an opportunity – a fortune could be made in selling cool, refreshing yogurt drinks on the street.

The opportunity also presented a challenge. Because the Korean diet is not heavy on dairy, some consumers worried about this new food, especially since the public mistakenly believed that the bacteria in yogurt were harmful rather than helpful.

In 1971, Korea Yakult hired about 50 women to sell yogurt from insulated bags. Though Koreans were unsure of this new dietary development, the yellow-clad yogurt saleswomen proved successful. Mere months after Yakult launched the program, the number of “Yakult Ladies” had jumped to 13,000.

Over the years, the means of yogurt-lady delivery has changed. At first, they used the original insulated bags. The yogurt had become increasingly popular as yogurt earned a reputation as a health food, so it became necessary to transport larger amounts. For a time, the yogurt ladies pushed the large, insulated carts when delivering yogurt to individual homes and selling it on the street.

Only about a year ago, the yogurt ladies began using their motorized carts. According to the Wall Street Journal, the change came about due to increased competition from companies delivering similar products on trucks. Yakult wanted to improve delivery speeds, while retaining its yogurt-lady model. Some adjustments required giving many yogurt ladies driver training, so they would not intimidate or endanger the surrounding foot traffic.

Yakult Ladies have attained cult status with many comics drawn and articles written that predicting the next generation ladies will use a self-driving cart or  computerized full-body armor to satiate that summer thirst.