A Virtuous Business Ep 1 premieres to solid ratings but should be a big hit on Netflix

The female-led Korean comedy drama A Virtuous Business, Episode 1 premiered last night to solid ratings.

Ratings that were very similar to those of the first episodes of most other JTBC dramas airing on Saturday and Sunday evenings in 2024.

The nationwide rating for the first episode of A Virtuous Business was 3.86 percent, with its Seoul audience delivering a similar 3.99 percent.

Both decent rating considering the Korean drama overlaps its airtime with ongoing dramas like Doubt, and the smash-hit series The Judge From Hell.

A Virtuous Business streaming on Netflix

Then again, it is likely on Netflix where A Virtuous Business will see its biggest success as Kdrama fans on that platform are always ravenous for any good Kdrama, which this one may be if other episodes turn out to be similar to its first.

If it’s even slightly risqué, which this one is, a Kdrama will often do even better.

The Netflix data for its Top 10 Non-English TV Shows will be released on Tuesday, so I will report back then, but my guess is it will do well with international audiences.

If nothing else for that absolutely stellar cast.

A Virtuous Business (aka 정숙한 세일즈 in Korean) stars Kim So Yeon (Tale of the Nine-Tailed 1938), Yeon Woo Jin (Nothing Uncovered), Kim Sung Ryung (Love to Hate You), Kim Sun Young (Crash Course in Romance), and Lee Se Hee (Bad Prosecutor).

The Korean drama tells the story of a group of women in conservative 1990s South Korea who decide to try to improve their financial lives by going into business selling adult products door-to-door.

And yep, it’s just as funny as you might expect.

The Kdrama’s next episode will hit both JTBC in South Korea and Netflix streaming internationally later on today.

About Michelle Topham

Brit-American journalist based in Austria,. Former radio DJ at 97X WOXY, and Founder/CEO of Leo Sigh. I've covered K-drama, K-pop, anime, and manga news for over a decade.