Inside look at 4-year mission behind Captain Q's unexpected resurgence

Behind the unexpected resurgence of Captain Q, which returned to the liquor market after an 11-year hiatus, was one man's four-year mission to reinvent the brand. His goal was to make the inexpensive rum-based spirit — once notorious for hangovers so severe that drinkers joked it took two days to recover — appealing to younger consumers without the baggage of its past. Priced at less than 10,000 won ($7.20), Captain Q has returned to public notice with a viral advertising campaign featuring comedian Lee Sun-min that paid homage to 1980s commercials. The limited-edition release of 12,000 sets sold out completely within a day of shipment. Even the Scottish supplier of the rum base was reportedly surprised, remarking, "Korea is such a dynamic market." Kim Dong-jun, a spirits manager on Lotte Chilsung Beverage's soju and spirits brand management team, had been preparing for Captain Q's revival since 2022. He can finally breathe a sigh of relief, knowing that four years of work had not gone to waste. At the company's headquarters in Songpa District in Seoul on Tuesday, Kim looked as flu