As South Korea’s largest coffee chain celebrates 25 years, it faces tough choices at home

Having harnessed the soaring popularity of café culture to achieve significant scale, Ediya Coffee now finds itself at a crossroads

25 years after opening its first store, Ediya Coffee is South Korea’s largest coffee chain by outlets. But with faltering sales and underperforming franchisees, it is also under pressure in a crowded market increasingly dominated by value-focused competitors.

It now faces a delicate balance between optimising operations and maintaining its market lead.