Bang & Olufsen plans major expansion in Korea
By Lee Min-hyung
Bang & Olufsen CEO Tue Mantoni introduces the BeoLab 90 loudspeaker at a flagship store in Apgujeong-dong, southern Seoul, Wednesday. / Courtesy of Bang & Olufsen
Bang & Olufsen CEO Tue Mantoni says the Danish high-end audio manufacturer is seeking an ambitious goal of opening 200 retail outlets here in three years.
“We have 700 shops across the world, with four in Korea ranked in the top 50,” Mantoni said in southern Seoul, Wednesday.
“In particular, the flagship store in Apgujeong is among the top five, beating a shop in New York City.”
Mantoni expressed confidence in the goal, because the company’s strong drive for high-end, pristine audio products was in line with Korean customers’ high demands for innovation and technology.
“If we can satisfy Korean customers, we can be successful anywhere in the world,” he said.
He said this was why the company identified the Korea as a “test-bed” before it launched products.
Bang & Olufsen marks its 90th anniversary this year -- it started producing audio products, in 1925.
Mantoni visited Korea to launch the company’s largest digital speaker, BeoLab 90, which costs 99 million won ($85,000). The new flagship model comes with 18 individually powered loudspeaker drivers, which the company says will be the “future of sound.”
“It’s expensive due to a lot of research and development costs,” he said. “When you drive innovation and break new ground, the product is expensive.
“It is also an investment for the next 10 to 15 years. We can take this technology from the speaker and put into all our new projects.”
Bang & Olufsen plans to launch two more speaker models within two to three years, each model featuring key technologies from BeoLab 90.
The company also stressed the importance of Korea as one of the most highly developed tech nations.
Lars Hardboe Galsgaard, managing director at the company’s China and Korea branch, said, “Brand awareness and the maturity of Bang & Olufsen in Korea is significantly higher than those of China.
“Chinese customers are not familiar with high-end products, but in terms of Korean customers, they have longer experiences of owning, having this kinds of technology.
“Consumers here are better educated than those from any other markets.”
The company also unveiled a plan to expand its digital-based marketing strategy here.
“We are focusing on digital marketing, making our brand more visible on digital platforms such as social media and search engines like Naver,” Mantoni said.
To survive in the competitive landscape, Mantoni said his company sought to differentiate itself using the motto “Sound is half the picture.”
“When it comes to television, there’s no one who makes the same products as ours in terms of sound and design,” Mantoni said.