Lee Je-hoon, president of ChildFund Korea, center left, and Starbucks Korea CEO Song Ho-seob, center right, pose during a donation ceremony held at Starbucks Korea's support center in Seoul, Wednesday. Starbucks Korea contributed 960 million won to the local children's foundation ahead of Christmas. Courtesy of Starbucks Korea
A customer walks by a shelf stacked with Orion's bestseller, Choco Pie, at a grocery store in Seoul on May 11. YonhapBy Kim Jae-heunConfectionery giant Orion is bolstering the lineup of its products in India after setting up a factory there earlier this year.Orion built a production plant in the state of Rajasthan in February and introduced its all-time bestseller, Choco Pie, original flavor, in March. Previously, Orion brought over its products from Vietnam to sell in India.In the meantime, the confectioner is preparing to penetrate all of the retail channels in India: from small stores in towns to supermarkets in large cities and e-commerce platforms.“India is a huge country with the world's second largest population. It is a global market with big potential that is going through changes in lifestyle and an increase in people's incomes,” an Orion official said. India is a country that features a longstanding and important tea culture. Biscuit products take up 40 percent of the confectionery market, as they can be enjoyed with warm beverages. Orion is set to target India
The delivery workers' union protests against Baedal Minjok in front of Woowa Brothers' headquarters in Seoul, on March 23. / Korea Times file By Kim Jae-heunLocal food delivery outsourcing agencies in Uijeongbu, northern Gyeonggi Province, have declared a boycott of Baedal Minjok (Baemin), the country's top food delivery platform service, owned by Delivery Hero.The agencies argue that Baemin's unilateral decision to raise the delivery fee for its “Baemin 1” service has led to an increase in food prices, hurting restaurateurs and customers, as well as delivery outsourcing agency drivers. It is the first time that food delivery outsourcing agencies have taken collective action against the local IT giant.Super Hero, the food delivery agency association, distributed fliers to people in Uijeongbu on Sunday that read, “Who is instigating the delivery fee hike?” The group further insisted that Baemin is eager to secure drivers by offering them twice the market average deli
A screenshot from the trailer for Netflix's new entertainment show, “The Hungry and the Hairy” / Courtesy of NetflixBy Kim Jae-heunNetflix has been successful in making hit original TV drama series here like “Kingdom,” “Squid Game” and most recently “Hellbound.”However, it has been quiet in the sector of entertainment shows, despite its continuous efforts to make one since 2018. There has only been one original series in the entertainment show category, “Paik's Spirit” featuring renowned restaurateur Paik Jong-won, which made it into Netflix's top 10 list for viewers in Korea. It reached the highest place of fifth in October. The show's success led the leading American over-the-top (OTT) service to scout Kim Tae-ho, the superstar entertainment show producer who released all 10 episodes of his new TV show “The Hungry and the Hairy” on Saturday. Whether this new show will be another hit or not is unknown yet, as it has only been a day since its release, but Netflix is expecting a lot from it. Not only did Kim take
By Kim Jae-heunLotte Department Store CEO Jung Joon-hoFor years, Lotte Group has been leading the local retail market with its rigid top-down management style. Junior staffers had to follow the order given by their bosses and the company prioritized the group before individuals. This led to Lotte's continuous economic growth but also blindfolded it to the side effects. However, that time is passing by and a new trend has arrived. Lotte's “vertical” corporate culture has become old-fashioned, and in the time when speed is the key to the success, the retail giant's overly prudent decision-making system led to it lagging behind its main rival Shinsegae and market newcomers. Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin has been asking executives at the company's retail units to carry out renovations and break down Lotte's traditional “military way” of management. However, the Lotte Shopping CEOs have failed to do so, because they too were imbued with the company's outdated organizational culture. Ahead of 2022, Shin made a big change by appointing Jung Joon-ho as a new lead
A cat receives a rabies vaccination at a veterinary clinic in Seoul on April 10, 2017. Korea Times fileBy Kim Jae-heunThe Korea Rural Economic Institute predicts the size of the domestic market for pet products and services to grow to 6 trillion won ($5.05 billion) by 2027. Riding on this trend, new services and products related to pets are being introduced every month. They include pet foods, appliances and care and funeral services.Local pharmaceutical giants like Yuhan, Daewoong Pharmaceutical and GS Pharma are launching medical products for pets. Yuhan secured a stake in the pet-related healthcare firm Neodin BioVet on Nov. 18. Yuhan plans to produce veterinary medicine and diagnostic kits and offer diagnostic test services for animals. Daewoong Pharmaceutical also acquired stakes in Daewoong Pet, which produces new animal-related drugs and online medical services. GS Pharma established a specialized pet medical service firm called “Green Vet” in March and signed an agreement with KH Medical on Nov. 3 for the research and development of diagnostic tests for pets.&ldqu
Jungheung Group Chairman Jung Chang-sun, left, poses with KDB Investment CEO Lee Dae-hyun after signing a stock purchase agreement to take over 50.75 percent of Daewoo E&C's shares, at a hotel in Seoul, on Dec. 9. Courtesy of Jungheung GroupBy Kim Jae-heunJungheung Group will acquire a controlling stake in Daewoo E&C, the company said Thursday.In a ceremony, Jungheung signed a stock purchase agreement (SPA) with Daewoo E&C to take over 50.75 percent of its shares. The SPA came five months after Jungheung was chosen as the preferred bidder, in July. The construction firm offered to pay 2.1 trillion won ($1.78 billion) and the price is said to have been finalized.Jungheung will also apply for a review of the acquisition with the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) this month as the joining of the two entities may help them see increased market share. Combining the construction capacity values of three firms equates to 11.91 trillion won, which will place Jungheung Group in third place, surpassing GS E&C (9.92 trillion won) and POSCO E&C (9.51 trillion won), which currently
Chanel Korea's employees protest at the French luxury brand's cosmetics counter at a local department store in Seoul on Oct. 10. Korea Times fileBy Kim Jae-heunChanel Korea's employees working on the cosmetics counters have announced that they will go on strike indefinitely from Dec. 17, calling for improvements in their working environment.The French luxury firm's union here held a press conference Tuesday demanding bonuses for their contribution to successful online sales, as well as the guaranteeing of paid holidays as per the Labor Law. The union said that it will end its protest if the company accepts its proposal. “We demand that the company not take all the profits alone that we took part in generating, and instead to pay us the proper wages that we deserve,” Chanel Korea's union representative, Kim So-yeon said. “We are protesting because Chanel Korea is not properly paying us for our labor.”Currently, there are 390 union members among the 480 staff working at Chanel cosmetics stores within local department stores and duty free shops. On the same day,
Samples of Celltrion's COVID-19 antibody treatment Regkirona / Courtesy of CelltrionBy Kim Jae-heunAustralia's Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) said Tuesday it has conditionally approved Celltrion's COVID-19 antibody treatment Regkirona for use in the country. Many shareholders of the Korean biopharmaceutical company expected the announcement to lift its stock price, but it seems to have had no effect. Celltrion stocks to a plunge from 291,000 won on Sept. 23 to 193,500 won on Nov. 8. On Tuesday, despite the approval notice, Celltrion stocks fell by 1.45 percent to finish at 203,500 won on the KOSPI, according to data by the bourse operator Korea Exchange (KRX). Earlier, approval of Regkirona's distribution in Europe failed to help Celltrion's stock price. Europe, along with Australia, was considered a region that will help the local biopharmaceutical company to improve its value.This year has been tough for Celltrion as the overall industry has been on a losing streak. The company announced its plan recently to develop a customized inhaled medication for the Omicron variant, b
Namyang Dairy Product Chairman Hong Won-sik appears at a government audit in the National Assembly on Yeouido, Seoul, Oct. 8. YonhapDayou needs more than W150 bil. in external funds for acquisition dealBy Kim Jae-heunDayou Winia Group (Dayou), a mid-sized auto parts maker, signed a conditional contract with Namyang Dairy to acquire a controlling stake in the firm, but only if the dairy company wins its ongoing lawsuit with Hahn & Company ― otherwise, the sales agreement will be nullified.Furthermore, Namyang Dairy Chairman Hong Won-sik can change his mind at any time as Dayou and Namyang have not settled on any specific contract details such as the dates to ink a share purchase agreement or make payment. One of the most convincing reasons that has been said about Hong's sudden change of heart to “not sell” his company to Hahn & Company was the low price Namyang offered in the first place. Hong offered to sell his family's and his controlling stake of 53.07 percent for 320 billion won ($269.2 million). This brought about a controversy as the market estimates Namyan