The Korea Times

No Brand Pizza accused of copying GOPIZZA

Models hold pizzas from No Brand Pizza at a restaurant in Seoul, March 10. Courtesy of Shinsegae FoodBy Kim Jae-heunNo Brand Pizza, a pizza chain newly launched by Shinsegae Food, has been accused of copying the product concept and store interior of GOPIZZA, another local pizza franchise, according to industry officials Wednesday.GOPIZZA's restaurant in Daechi, southern Seoul / Courtesy of GOPIZZAGOPIZZA, which claims it makes the fastest pizza in just eight minutes, developed a high-temperature smart oven which it says cooks pizza quickly to compete with international pizza restaurants, as those take 13 minutes on average to make a pizza. This technique has helped GOPIZZA to open over 100 restaurants across the country in the six years since first starting out with a food truck in 2016, the company said.GOPIZZA officials claimed that Shinsegae copied its sales and operational knowhow when it opened its first No Brand Pizza restaurant right across from GOPIZZA's store in southern Seoul, March 10. “We spent a lot of money developing the oven used at our franchise restaurants. Bu

Mar 23, 2022By Kim Jae-heun

Companies

Kakao seeks to expand IP business with SM Entertainment

Kakao CEO Namkoong Whon speaks to the press during an online media briefing on Aug. 26, 2020. Courtesy of Kakao By Kim Jae-heunKakao has emerged as a strong candidate to acquire SM Entertainment, as it hopes to utilize the talent agency's intellectual property to compete with its platform rival Naver, according to industry officials, Tuesday.CJ ENM entered talks last year with SM Entertainment to take over the talent agency. However, they did not find common ground in fixing the sell-off price and Kakao ended up taking CJ ENM's place, according to officials.Kakao previously acquired EDAM Entertainment and Antenna Music to boost its entertainment business. However, it learned that they are not enough to compete against Naver, which has formed business partnerships with HYBE and CJ ENM. HYBE is home to globally successful K-pop band BTS. If Kakao takes over SM Entertainment, it will be able to feature aespa, EXO and NCT in its original content and actively engage in t

Mar 22, 2022By Kim Jae-heun

Kakao seeks to expand IP business with SM Entertainment

Companies

Lotte to beef up mobility business

Lotte Rental's Jeju Auto House on the southern resort island / Courtesy of Lotte RentalBy Kim Jae-heunLotte Group is speeding up its entry into the secondhand car market, as part of efforts to build up its mobility business ecosystem covering transportation, tourism and shopping services, the company said Monday. Lotte Rental, a leading car rental agency in the country, will start selling used cars sometime between July and December this year, targeting general consumers. Lotte Rental seeks to secure a 10 percent market share for used cars by 2025, as it already maintains an infrastructure trading some 50,000 secondhand vehicles annually. It will soon open a used car dealership to provide test driving and maintenance services too.Earlier this month, Lotte Rental invested 180 billion won ($148.1 million) into SoCar, becoming the third-largest shareholder in the car-sharing company. It already operates the country's No.2 car-sharing platform GreenCar. It also invested 25 billion won in 42dot, a local autonomous-driving startup, last August and it is collaborating with LG Energy Solutio

Mar 22, 2022By Kim Jae-heun

Companies

Musinsa criticized for heavy reliance on white models

By Kim Jae-heunMusinsa CEO Han Mun-ilThe country's largest online fashion mall Musinsa is facing criticism for hiring mostly white fashion models for its brand Musinsa Standard, according to industry officials Friday. Musinsa Standard's main model is actor Yoo Ah-in. However, a significant portion of the pictorials for single items on its website show Caucasian models. “Korean brands need to stop the discrimination and follow the new trend of accepting racial diversity. It will not only help the brand raise awareness but also improve profitability,” a fashion industry official said on condition of anonymity. “Local customers prefer white models and they sell clothes well too. At the same time, their model fees are lower than Korean models', which gives more reason for companies here to favor Caucasian models over locals.”Other local fashion brands such as KIRSH and COVERNAT also hire Caucasians as their main models and use Asian models mostly as substitutes. CNN Apparel, which is a brand launched by a Korean firm with a license to use the branding of the U.S.

Mar 19, 2022By Kim Jae-heun

Musinsa criticized for heavy reliance on white models

Companies

Is Outback Steakhouse's quality really getting worse?

Models pose with Outback Steakhouse food at The Plaza Seoul, July 11, 2017. Korea Times fileBy Kim Jae-heunThe quality of food at Outback Steakhouse has been under criticism lately, as some people claim the Australia-themed family restaurant has seen a decline in food quality after its acquisition last November by bhc, Korea's second-largest fried chicken franchise. But the company flatly denied such claims, saying it will take legal action against anyone spreading “groundless” rumors.“We did not change any of our recipes for Outback Steakhouse meals, but instead strived to offer the best quality food and services to maintain its reputation as a premium dining brand,” a bhc official said. “Outbeak Steakhouse will take legal action to protect its customers from rumors circulating on internet communities that the steakhouse franchise has downgraded food quality to cut costs.” Bhc refuted every single criticism raised at dcinside.com, the country's largest community portal site that is visited by 3 million people per day. One of the posts uploaded on

Mar 18, 2022By Kim Jae-heun

Is Outback Steakhouse's quality really getting worse?

Companies

Han to head fashion platform Musinsa alone

By Kim Jae-heunMusinsa CEO Han Mun-ilThe country's largest fashion platform, Musinsa, has decided to run its business under a single representative system by appointing Han Mun-il as the sole CEO, the company said, Wednesday. Musinsa is headed by Han and co-CEO Kang Jung-gu now.Musinsa expects Han to accelerate the company's growth based on quick decision making, as he will lead the company alone after the board of directors meeting scheduled for the end of this month. Kang will leave his top executive position and take on his next role as the company's adviser. After joining Musinsa in 2018, Han played a key role in expanding the company's business by establishing its growth strategy, attracting external investments and acquiring startups in the fashion industry. Han also launched Musinsa's various new businesses, including Musinsa Terrace, Musinsa Studio and Soldout. He is now in charge of the company's overall management, focusing on marketing and sales, as well as global business. “It is my goal to help local fashion brands and Korean fashion designers get the spotlight and

Mar 17, 2022By Kim Jae-heun

Han to head fashion platform Musinsa alone

Companies

Nongshim to open another plant in US

Nongshim's second production line in California / Courtesy of NongshimBy Kim Jae-heunNongshim will open its second manufacturing facility in California next month, enabling the food giant to produce a total of 8.5 million packs of instant noodles, the company said Thursday.It has recently completed the construction of new production lines next to an existing one in Los Angeles. The two facilities are expected to create synergy by cutting logistics and raw material costs, company officials said.The new factory will focus on mass production of steady sellers like Shin Ramyun, Shin Ramyun Black and Yukejang (beef bowl noodle soup) Bowl Noodle.“Last year, we had to borrow some stocks from domestic facilities to cover up the soaring demand in America. Our old factory's production capacity reached its maximum level at that time,” a Nongshim official said. “We expect our new production line to contribute largely in expanding supply for our popular noodle items in North, Central and South America.” Nongshim has been flourishing in the region's instant noodle markets i

Mar 17, 2022By Kim Jae-heun

Companies

Homeplus seeks rebound through renewed grocery business

Customers shop at Homeplus's new Mega Food Market store at Ganseok branch in Incheon on Feb. 17. Courtesy of Homeplus By Kim Jae-heunHomeplus is looking to improve profitability by revamping its grocery stores to focus on premium fresh foods this year, company officials said Tuesday.The retail giant first introduced its “Mega Food Market” at its Ganseok branch in Incheon in February, by moving its bakery and salad corners closer to its entrance to attract more customers. “We also diversified our product lines for convenient foods at the grocery store in accordance with our customers' preferences, which turned out to be successful,” a Homeplus official said.The revenue of its bakery brand, “Mon Boulanger,” at Mega Food Market between Feb. 17 and March 6 soared by 75 percent year-on-year. Homeplus has also launched what it calls, its “Fresh To Go” market, where customers can choose their own toppings and staff there make salads directly for them. The retailer opened u

Mar 16, 2022By Kim Jae-heun

Homeplus seeks rebound through renewed grocery business

Companies

Nongshim, Ottogi to challenge Paldo in spicy noodles market

Comedian Yoo Jae-suk poses in a commercial for Nongshim's spicy noodles, “Bae Hongdong Bibimmeyon,” last year. Courtesy of NongshimBy Kimi Jae-heunCompetition is heating up over the rapidly growing spicy noodles market as Nongshim, Ottogi and Samyang Foods are preparing to challenge the No. 1 player, Paldo, this coming summer, according to company officials, Monday.According to the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation, Monday, the local spicy noodle market has been growing by 10 percent annually for the last decade. In 2014, its size reached 67.3 billion won, which more than doubled to 150 billion won in 2021.Paldo has been dominating the market for the past 38 years, since the launch of its best-selling “Paldo Bibimmeyon” in 1984. It once enjoyed a market share of over 60 percent, but the latecomers have introduced similar instant noodles with a sweet and spicy sauce that brought the figure down to the 50-percent range. Nongshim has a big dream to challenge Paldo this year.Although, it only holds 20 percent of the market share currently, its spic

Mar 15, 2022By Kim Jae-heun

Nongshim, Ottogi to challenge Paldo in spicy noodles market

Companies

Booyoung Group to donate W500 mil. to wildfire victims

Booyoung Group's headquarters in Seoul / Courtesy of Booyoung GroupBy Kim Jae-heunBooyoung Group will contribute 500 million won ($402,868) to the Hope Bridge Korea Disaster Relief Association to help restore areas damaged by wildfire in the east coast region, the construction firm said on Monday. It also plans to provide 300 apartments in Gangwon Province ― 70 in Gangneung and 230 in Donghae ― for victims to stay in until they can return to their homes. “We will work with the local government to determine the number of victims and help them move into our shelters as soon as possible. We hope to aid them until things return to the normal,” a Booyoung Group official said. Booyoung Group has been engaging in relief activities around the country and abroad for the past few decades. It provided 52 shelters for victims of the 2017 earthquake in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province. It also offered 224 lodgings in Gangwon Province when wildfires broke out in 2019.Booyoung Group raised funds for the bereaved families of soldiers killed on the Cheonan warship that was attacked by No

Mar 14, 2022By Kim Jae-heun

Kim Jae-heun

Read more

No Brand Pizza accused of copying GOPIZZA

Kakao seeks to expand IP business with SM Entertainment

Lotte to beef up mobility business

Musinsa criticized for heavy reliance on white models

Is Outback Steakhouse's quality really getting worse?

Han to head fashion platform Musinsa alone

Nongshim to open another plant in US

Homeplus seeks rebound through renewed grocery business

Nongshim, Ottogi to challenge Paldo in spicy noodles market

Booyoung Group to donate W500 mil. to wildfire victims

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