- Paldo and HY (formerly Korea Yakult) launched ARIH, a new food and beverage brand built directly around BTS and their 2026 album ARIRANG, with the goal of sharing "the true, unfiltered resonance of Korea" with global audiences.
- All seven BTS members had direct creative input into ARIH's brand name, product flavors, packaging design, and its core concept of "balance, happiness, and health in everyday life."
- The product range includes restaurant-inspired soupless fettuccine-style noodles in seven flavors, postbiotic energy drinks with zero sugar, and prebiotic sparkling sodas free of artificial colors and sweeteners.
- As official sponsor of the BTS WORLD TOUR: ARIRANG, ARIH will run interactive pop-ups and product sample booths at each concert stop, beginning in Tampa this weekend.
BTS (RM, Jin, SUGA, j-hope, Jimin, V, and Jung Kook) have teamed up with Korean food companies Paldo and HY (formerly Korea Yakult) to co-create ARIH, a wellness food and beverage brand anchored in the group’s identity and ARIRANG album.
The members shaped everything, from the brand name and flavors to packaging design and the product’s wellness philosophy.
The ARIH lineup features instant noodle pillows and bowls in flavors like Gochujang Butter, Truffle Bulgogi, and Black Pepper Tteokbokki, but unlike typical ramyeon, these are restaurant-inspired, soupless noodles with a modern fettuccine-style texture.
On the drinks side, the brand offers sugar-free postbiotic energy drinks and prebiotic sparkling sodas targeting energy, clarity, and gut health.
This marks the first collaboration between BTS and ARIH, which was purpose-built around the group. It’s also one of several major deals tied to the ARIRANG era.
BTS recently landed Visa as worldwide tour sponsor for their 82-date global run, and members individually hold active partnerships with brands including Samsung, Hublot (Jung Kook), Celine and Cartier (V), Dior (Jimin), and Louis Vuitton (j-hope).
ARIH’s promotional content has already sparked fan buzz, with the group’s least kitchen-savvy members (RM, Jimin, and V) featured making the noodles in ads.
K-pop brand collaborations like this mirror moves seen across the industry, much like when KATSEYE teamed up with Gap on a limited-edition release designed with direct artist input.
Takeaways
This isn’t your standard celebrity-slaps-face-on-product endorsement. ARIH is a brand that literally would not exist without BTS, it was conceived, named, and designed with them. That level of creative ownership is rare in celebrity-brand deals, and it flips the script on how we think about K-pop partnerships.
This endorsement also continues a proven commercial formula. Companies that have worked with BTS have historically seen substantial jumps in sales and marketing results, with home appliance brand Coway seeing revenue rise in Malaysia and the U.S. after featuring the group in campaigns. ARIH isn’t just riding BTS’s fame; it’s been engineered to live or die by it.
For Paldo and HY, this is a significant swing at the U.S. wellness market, one that blends Korean food culture with health-forward positioning at a moment when K-culture has never had more mainstream traction.
With BTS having creative ownership over ARIH, does this set a new benchmark for what celebrity brand partnerships should look like, or is it a one-of-a-kind case that only works at BTS’s level of influence?
Can ARIH build long-term retail staying power after the ARIRANG tour cycle ends, or is this a hype-driven launch that fades with the album?
