“My order book is already full”: K-pop fans rob the Moonlight café in Chartres

It’s hard to miss the musical phenomenon of South Korean pop as the numbers are driving the meters crazy. The group of male artists BTS is breaking records with 850 million albums sold and nearly 46 billion streams on the Spotify platform. And the musical “KPop Demon Hunters”, with more than 500 million views on Netflix, won two Oscars, including best original song.

K-culture, with a “K” for “Korean”, is indeed taking over the world, and a young woman from Chartres saw the opportunity to open her very first store. For two weeks, at number 12 Place des Épars in Chartres, the new Moonlight café, whose name is a nod to the Korean boy band NCT Dream, has been full. Behind her counter, dressed in a navy blue sweatshirt printed with her logo, interweaving a half-moon and a steaming cup, Marion Andraud welcomes us with natural relaxation. “I like contact with people,” says, if necessary, the young entrepreneur from Clermont-Ferrand who arrived in Eure-et-Loir two years ago for work.

“Fans were waiting for a place to find products without going all the way to Paris”

“I went through all the trades before opening this café. I worked as a prefecture secretary, an educational facilitator at the Beauval zoo, and a tour guide at the cathedral. » Enriching experiences but unrelated to Marion Andraud’s real passion for everything that comes from Seoul. “My best friend lives there, she sends me packages regularly and keeps me informed of trends. I’ve been a fan of Korea since 2012, I like the music of GOT7 or Stray Kids, manga like Kuroko’s Basket of which I have the complete collection and am starting to learn the language. »

Then the obvious becomes urgent, after discussions with other fans at Cherisy Manga, a Eurelian festival, but also at the BD Flash store in Chartres: “I discovered that many of us did not dare to express our love for K-pop. There was a real expectation of a place to gather and find products without having to go all the way to Paris. »

The Auvergne who has always dreamed of running his business is taking the plunge, supported by his family and his other half. In five months, she found premises and funding: “It was super quick. I was lucky enough to be helped by Initiative Eure-et-Loir, from the business plan to the completion of the project, and to benefit from a zero-interest loan. From my pocket, I took out less than 5,000 euros, it is far from an inaccessible sum. »

400 sales on the first day

And Marion Andraud was not mistaken. During our visit, customers pass through without stopping and find what they are looking for between different spaces: the tea and coffee room, the small grocery store, the shelves offering a selection of derivative products, and the reading corner. “The very first day, I made 400 sales, I didn’t expect to be so robbed! People come in for a sweet break, as I prepare homemade pastries, and to place personalized orders. They are looking for albums or stuffed animals bearing the image of a specific group member, which cannot be found in major retailers… My notebook is already full! »

Passed in the store, a mother accompanied by her children confirms to us that K-pop is an expensive passion. “I have to spend around 150 euros per month but I’m not the worst. » Because very often, children end up falling into the trap: “My daughter takes K-pop dance lessons in Nogent-le-Phaye and my son reads manga”. Another customer, who came to stock up on ramen noodles and Pepero, Korean biscuits similar to Mikados, is delighted with this proximity: “It saves me from taking the train and spending money with Parisian retailers.”

A wave which seduced a couple in their sixties, seated on beanbags with their drinks and imagining an upcoming vacation on Korean soil. “I am a neuroscience researcher and although I am not a fan of music, I am interested in the history and food of Korea. It would also be good, in the future, if there were Korean novels in the library of this café. »

Ideas for improvements that Marion Andraud welcomes with open arms, she who wants to introduce this universe to the widest possible audience, and who is already planning to diversify her shelves in addition to future blind-test and karaoke evenings.