Sartori Cheese, a fourth-generation family-owned artisanal cheese company, is accelerating its international growth and expanding its reach to new consumers across South Korea through its partnership with American retail, technology and Fortune 150 company Coupang.
“Our mission has always been to make the best cheese in the world and we have built our business around quality — from the milk we source to the craftsmanship that goes into every wheel of cheese,” said Bert Sartori, CEO of Sartori Cheese. “We have spent more than a decade building international sales, but partnering with Coupang has allowed us to reach Korean consumers faster and at a scale that was previously out of reach. Expanding our customer base overseas directly supports our partner family farms, our local workforce and our long-standing cheesemaking tradition here in Plymouth.”
Sartori’s newly-formed relationship with Coupang has provided a powerful accelerator for its growth with customers in Asia. By leveraging Coupang’s unique logistics infrastructure, Sartori is able to introduce flagship products like SarVecchio® Parmesan and BellaVitano® varieties directly to Korean households. With a population of more than 51 million people, Korea is Wisconsin’s third largest overseas agricultural market.
Coupang makes exporting easy for U.S. businesses
Coupang’s logistics network enables Sartori to move its cheese to consumers in Asia efficiently. Customer orders in Korea are delivered through Rocket Fresh, the country’s premier online grocer. This efficiency provides American producers the opportunity to offer high-value perishable agricultural goods, which are sensitive to transit times, to millions of customers.
The challenges associated with exporting are significant for many U.S. businesses like Sartori, ranging from international marketing to shipping, customs paperwork, foreign regulations and the logistics of last mile delivery. U.S. businesses need a reliable and innovative partner that can provide a seamless, turnkey export process.
This is precisely what Coupang does for thousands of U.S. businesses exporting their products to Korea and Taiwan. Coupang has invested billions of dollars in artificial intelligence, robotics, cloud computing, automation, infrastructure and technological innovations to support the growth of its global operations and make exporting simple and easy for U.S. businesses. Overall, Coupang helped generate more than $5 billion in sales of U.S. goods and services overseas in 2025 alone.
“Sartori’s success demonstrates how world-class products from rural communities in Wisconsin and across America can succeed in global markets,” said Coupang Head of Global Public Policy Scott Jacobs. “Coupang is working with thousands of U.S. businesses and brands to eliminate traditional trade barriers so that customers around the world can enjoy innovative American agricultural products like Sartori Cheese.”
Expanding global trade boosts Wisconsin dairy industry
For domestic agriculture and food manufacturers, foreign market access can serve as an engine for state and local growth. As appetite for premium American food products continues to grow across Asia, access to established digital distribution networks is proving critical for domestic producers seeking to capture new market share.