When a global fan army descends on a city, the smart operators are the ones ready to feed it. From July 24 through August 9, 2026, TOUS les JOURS—the Korean bakery café brand behind freshly baked breads, handcrafted pastries and cakes—is doing exactly that as the Official Bakery Café Sponsor of BTS THE CITY ARIRANG NEW YORK.
The play is deceptively simple: turn four New York-area bakery cafés into fan destinations, layer on limited-time menu items, exclusive merch and photo moments, and let the world's most mobilized fanbase do the rest. For food and beverage operators watching how cultural moments convert to foot traffic, it's a clinic worth studying.
What TOUS les JOURS Is Rolling Out
Across the run, participating locations will feature themed décor, a special limited-edition menu and the centerpiece of the whole activation: the exclusive BTS THE CITY ARIRANG Cake, created just for the event and available only during the promotion.
Four bakery cafés are participating:
- Dumbo Bakery Café — 107 York St, Brooklyn, NY 11201
- Union Bakery Café — 39-02 Union St, Flushing, NY 11354
- American Dream Bakery Café — 1 American Dream Way, East Rutherford, NJ 07073
- Madison Square Park Bakery Café — 24 E. 23rd St., New York, NY 10010 (plus the Weverse Stamp Rally)
At the Madison Square Park location, the Weverse Stamp Rally runs July 24 through August 3, letting attendees scan QR codes to collect digital stamps. The broader in-store experience continues through August 9.
A Pop-Up Series and an ARMY 'MADANG' Activation
Beyond the in-store menus, TOUS les JOURS is staging four official pop-up events with a special menu, complimentary samples, exclusive gifts and photo moments:
- Wednesday, July 29 — Dumbo Bakery Café | 11 a.m. – 3 p.m.
- Thursday, July 30 — Union Bakery Café | 11 a.m. – 3 p.m.
- Friday, July 31 — American Dream Bakery Café | 11 a.m. – 3 p.m.
- Saturday, August 1 — Madison Square Park Bakery Café Pop-Up | 11 a.m. – 3 p.m.
The brand also joins the official three-day ARMY 'MADANG' experience, running Saturday, August 1 through Monday, August 3 at the Korean Cultural Center, New York (122 E. 32nd St., New York, NY 10016), 11 a.m. – 7 p.m. There, visitors can expect signature menu offerings, exclusive gifts like stickers and slap bracelets, interactive activities, and spin-wheel giveaways including coupons and cakes.
Select BTS THE CITY ARIRANG NEW YORK merchandise will be available with qualifying purchases beginning on each café's pop-up date through August 9, while supplies last. Purchase requirements and availability may vary by location.
Korean Bakery Culture, Front and Center
The menu leans hard into the brand's heritage. Alongside the exclusive cake, guests can grab fan-favorite Korean bakery items including Caramel Apple Pie, Red Bean Bread, Kimchi Croquette, Milk Cream Bread, Iced Ube Latte and Strawberry Lemonade.
For TOUS les JOURS, the tie-in is less a marketing stunt than a statement of identity.
"'BTS THE CITY ARIRANG' is a natural expression of who we are as a Korean bakery café brand," said Max Gallegos, Chief Marketing Officer of TOUS les JOURS. "Korean culture is not a trend for us. It is at the heart of our food, our hospitality, and the experiences we create every day. By transforming our New York bakery cafés into fan destinations, we are giving BTS fans a place to gather, celebrate, and connect through delicious flavors, merchandise, and memorable shared experiences."
Why It Matters
This activation is a template for how food and beverage operators can turn a cultural event into measurable traffic and brand affinity—without diluting who they are. A few takeaways for the industry:
- Authenticity is the moat. TOUS les JOURS isn't chasing a K-pop moment cold; it's a Korean bakery brand (owned by CJ Foodville, in the U.S. since 2004) leaning into a Korean cultural celebration. That alignment makes the partnership credible to fans and hard for competitors to copy.
- Exclusivity drives urgency. A limited-edition cake, "while supplies last" merch, and a time-boxed window (July 24–Aug 9) create scarcity that pulls dedicated fans through the door on a schedule—useful for forecasting labor and inventory.
- Multi-touch beats single-site. Four cafés, four pop-ups, a stamp rally and an off-premise activation spread reach across NYC, Brooklyn, Flushing and New Jersey, capturing travelers converging on the event from around the world.
- Digital + physical loyalty. The Weverse Stamp Rally and QR-driven engagement collect data and repeat visits—a model any operator can adapt to a local festival, sports event or convention.
The practical lesson for restaurateurs, foodservice executives and franchise operators: when a large, passionate audience is coming to town, the winning move is to be the destination that already speaks their language—then give them a reason to come back before the window closes.
The Bigger Picture
Korean flavors continue to captivate global audiences, and brands are finding that heritage sells. It's a thread we've seen across food and beverage collaborations—from OREO's BTS tie-in to the growing embrace of ingredients like ube in American menus. For operators, the signal is clear: cultural fluency is becoming a competitive advantage.
Planning a promotion around a big event in your market? Study this playbook, then tell us in the comments how you'd adapt it for your restaurant, café or foodservice operation. For more information, visit www.tljus.com.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine’s “Top 40 Under 40” for founding American Wholesale Floral. Politz is also the founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
