By Kim Tae-gyu
Staff Reporter
Lotte Group founder Shin Kyuk-ho's three siblings have often caught media attention due to power transfers ― Lotte Shopping President Young-ja, Lotte Group Vice Chairman Dong-bin and Lotte Japan Executive Vice President Dong-ju.
Although many people are unaware, there is another example of power struggles within the family involving Shin's youngest daughter, Yoo-mi who was born in 1983 from Shin's extramarital relationship with a 1977 pageant competition winner.
While her elder sister and brothers from a different mother rose to fame, Yoo-mi and her mother remained nameless. This year she came to the fore after taking a role in the country's fifth-largest chaebol.
Lotte Group confirmed Wednesday that the 27-year-old Yoo-mi was appointed as a non-standing advisor for Lotte Hotel, an unlisted firm and one of the top 10 subsidiaries of the group, this February.
Yet, the chaebol denied the rumors that Yoo-mi might emerge as a contender to take over some of Lotte's units. As of this April, Lotte had a total of 60 affiliates with eight of them listed on the Seoul bourse.
``While in Japan, Yoo-mi showed a keen interest in hotels. That's why she was tapped as an advisor to Lotte Hotel. But she has nothing to do with the management of the group,'' a Lotte spokesman said.
A majority of market analysts agree because Yoo-mi and her mother do not have large stakes in the group. They have just 0.2 percent of Lotte Shopping, the top company for the conglomerate.
``The market consensus is that Yoo-mi's appointment is not a big issue. Her stake in the group's companies is also too small. They were bought during the financial crisis when their value was low,'' KB Securities analyst Lee So-yong said.
``The chances are that Yoo-mi and her mother will sell the stakes when the prices rise. The bottom line is that they appear to hold the equities for profit rather than for any managerial purposes.''
Shinhan Investment Corp. researcher Keven Yeo concurs.
``Yoo-mi's new role will not affect Lotte Group's ownership structure. It will not influence share prices of the group's corporations. This demonstrates that investors underplay the measure,'' Yeo said.
``In my view, Shin seems to offer some small benefits to his youngest daughter just as other chaebol founders do for their offspring. Her role is kind of a part-time job.''
But some observers put weight on the rise of Yoo-mi.
``You don't know what will happen in the chaebol power transfer. The whole picture might change at the last minute following the decision of the tycoon,'' said a Seoul analyst who asked not to be named.
``Yoo-mi has never been seen in the past but now she is at least a small blip on the radar screen of the Lotte Group. Her sister or brothers might sweat on any glitch that might threaten their prospective positions.''
Shin established Lotte in 1948 as a maker of chewing gum and has taken a firm root both in Korea and Japan, expanding its business horizons to beverages, retail, fast food chains and amusement parks.
Different from Japan's keiretsu, chaebol refers to Korea's sprawling conglomerates in which founding families exercise almost unlimited power despite small direct shareholdings.