Pepero Day Korea Brings Back a Snack Shared with Friends

“Hey, have some Pepero!”

When I think about the Pepero Day Korea celebrates, that is about as much as I remember of exchanging snacks with friends at school. I think we handed them over in the morning with those words. My memory is of giving a friend a snack, rather than a special confession or a carefully prepared event.

I did not have a partner then, so I exchanged Pepero with friends. I am now in my forties, and when I was at school, dating between minors was viewed strictly. Giving the snack to a friend was more familiar in my school life than giving it to a partner. I would not say every student had the same experience as me.

The occasion was also not as widely observed as it is now. I do not remember it as a day that had always existed throughout my childhood. We did exchange snacks at school, but it was not something we celebrated in a big way. If I were explaining it to a friend visiting Korea, I would not describe it as a day that every Korean eagerly waits for and takes part in.

Why Does the Pepero Day Korea Celebrates Fall on November 11?

Pepero (빼빼로) is a long, stick-shaped snack. Write November 11 as 11/11 and you have four ones standing side by side. Their shape is associated with the snack, giving the exchange its date.

One account of the origin says students in Busan and the surrounding Gyeongnam region began giving each other Pepero in the 1990s with wishes to become slim. I did not witness that beginning myself, and I cannot establish the location or exact first year from my own memories. What I experienced was exchanging snacks with friends at school afterward.

Promotion by the company that makes Pepero, along with shops selling gifts, has also helped publicize the day. It helps to distinguish the origin story from today’s sales events. An account of students starting the exchange does not remove its commercial character today. Equally, my seeing it as a sales tactic does not establish that a company invented the very first exchange.

The Convenience Store Display Tells Me It Is November

When November approaches and I see Pepero piled outside a convenience store, my first thought is simple: “Oh, it is November already.” Before I think about any gift plans, I notice that the month has changed.

I am not someone who gets particularly excited by those displays. Still, seeing so much Pepero makes me recognize the time of year. The snacks outside the shop tell me the season before I separately check the calendar.

If you encounter that display while traveling, you do not need to read it as preparations for a traditional ceremony. The snacks are arranged to make gift shopping easy ahead of November 11. I gave the same snack to my school friends, but for me, the main part was simply handing over something to eat.

I Thought It Was a Sales Tactic Then, and I Still Do

I consider Pepero Day a corporate sales tactic. My view has not changed much since childhood. To me, it feels different from long-established occasions such as Jeongwol Daeboreum (정월대보름, the first full moon of the lunar year), Seollal (설날, Lunar New Year), or Chuseok (추석, the autumn harvest holiday).

I feel the same when comparing it with Christmas or Buddha’s Birthday, both of which existed long before I was born. I am not suggesting that all those occasions have the same meaning or history. My distinction is between a long-established day and an event that came into view as I grew up.

Yet I exchanged Pepero with friends while thinking of it as a sales tactic. Both things belong to my memory. Seeing a corporate sales event and handing a snack to a friend did not have to cancel each other out.

That is why I cannot say everyone likes the day, but I also cannot say its commercial nature leaves nobody a reason to enjoy it. The words I remember from those mornings were “Hey, have some Pepero!” I do not need to attach some larger meaning to the snack we handed over.

A Traveler Can Join In with One Ordinary Box

If a friend visiting Korea wanted to try giving someone a Pepero Day gift, I would suggest thinking of the owner of a restaurant where they enjoyed a meal, or a member of staff at their accommodation. It is a way to hand a small snack to someone you appreciated during your trip.

I would recommend one ordinary box from a convenience store. To me, a very elaborately decorated gift has a stronger association with giving something to a romantic partner. If you want to express casual thanks during your trip, a plain snack box is enough. More elaborate packaging does not necessarily make your gratitude clearer.

On Reddit, one commenter described giving Pepero on the day to people who regularly prepared their food. The recipients were surprised but appreciated the gesture, according to that commenter. That is one person’s experience, rather than a promise that every restaurant or accommodation will respond in the same way. You can read it as an example of the small gift I would suggest to a friend.

When handing it over, you can add a thank-you for a meal you enjoyed or a pleasant stay. You do not need to prepare a large gift that might suggest a romantic relationship, or expect anything in return. That is the scale I would recommend if you want to experience the day while traveling.

Still, I am not sure you really need to spend money to do this. Even while suggesting a gift, I come back to that thought. Arriving in Korea does not make buying snacks an obligation too.

If you are in Korea on November 11 and have someone you would like to thank, choose an ordinary box at a convenience store and give it to them. If you have nobody in mind or simply do not want to buy one, you can pass it by. Like the snacks in my school memories, share one casually when you want to.

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