By Jane Han
Staff Reporter
Britons are falling for Korean food disposal units, while Americans are digging Korean electric cars, a beginning to what could be a promising overseas business for local companies, KOTRA said in its latest “green” report, Monday.
It said many South Korean companies are expanding their presence in eco-friendly industries overseas as manufacturers and marketers here are in the know on the latest trends and technologies.
The trade promotion agency highlighted Loofen, a stand-alone food disposal unit, as one of the products selling strong in the international market, particularly in London.
"Food disposal has always been a headache for many Britons, so it was smart for the Korean firm to take advantage of the problem,’’ according to KOTRA.
Locally-manufactured light emitting diodes (LED) lights are being sought by Japanese developers. ST Wide recently supplied LED street lights worth $350,000 to upgrade the lighting infrastructure in Tokyo, the report said.
CT&T, a leading domestic electric vehicle manufacturer, successfully entered the U.S. market recently by supplying 4,000 neighborhood electric cars to California police organizations.
The quirky-looking units will be used as downtown parking supervision vehicles, said KOTRA.
The state-run agency stressed that understanding the preference of each market is critical prior to launching a product or service, as the research plays a decisive factor for success.
It offered the example of Kntech’s street lights as a well-prepared product.
The company won a contract from the city of Coquitlam in Canada to supply street lights, but the reason for the successful bid was more than the product’s quality, KOTRA said.
Kntech’s design incorporated the shape of a cobra head, which is apparently popular in Canada, a detail that helped give the firm an edge over others, it said.
"Some of the largest and most important overseas markets are quickly transforming as they are moving toward eco-friendly practices,’’ said Han Sun-hee, an official of KOTRA, who added that Korean firms should aggressively explore new products and services to be ahead in the emerging industry.