The Korea Times

BAT Korea has new CEO

By Lee Hyo-sikErik StoelBritish America Tobacco Korea (BAT Korea) said Tuesday that it has promoted marketing director Erik Stoel to CEO, who will replace outgoing Guy Meldrum on Jan. 1, 2016.Stoel, born in the Netherlands, has been marketing director at BAT Korea for the past three years. He has made a substantial contribution to the tobacco maker by turning its flagship brand Dunhill into one of the country’s best selling brands, the company said.Stoel has also successfully introduced a new sales and distribution structure, enabling BAT Korea to become the first multinational fast-moving consumer goods maker in Korea to adopt such a system.“I am honored to have been given the opportunity to continue working with such an outstanding group of leaders here in BAT Korea,” Stoel said. “As BAT Korea is a strategically important market for the BAT Group, we will make sure that we continue our journey for growth by providing Korean consumers with innovative and high quality products that meet with their trendy preferences.He said the company will try to ship more ci

Dec 29, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Companies

Doosan unlikely to get good price for machine tool biz

By Lee Hyo-sikDoosan Infracore, the construction equipment unit of struggling Doosan Group, will not get the price it wants for its machine tool business as potential bidders are unwilling to pay more than what it is worth, according to industry sources, Tuesday.Three entities were confirmed to have submitted bids to the manager of the sale, Credit Suisse, for Doosan’s most profitable division. The bidders are MBK Partners, Standard Chartered Private Equity and Fair Friend Group, a machine tool maker in Taiwan.Industry officials say that either MBK or Fair Friend Group will likely be selected as the preferred bidder later this month.The bidders reportedly expressed their willingness to pay between 1.2 trillion won and 1.3 trillion won for the division, falling short of 2 trillion won that Doosan Infracore has been expecting to earn from the sale.Despite the significant price gap, Doosan is widely expected to unload the machine tool unit at whatever price the buyer is willing to pay, as the company is desperate to secure much-needed cash to improve its worsening bottom line.&ldq

Dec 22, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Companies

Korean consumers more accepting of US beef

By Lee Hyo-sikPhilip Seng, CEO of the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF), speaks during an interview with The Korea Times at the Westin Chosun Hotel, Monday. / Courtesy of USMEFThe acceptance of U.S. beef among Korean consumers has improved significantly since 2008 when the nation resumed its imports, according to the head of the U.S. beef promotion body, Monday.In an interview with The Korea Times, Philip Seng, CEO of the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF), said the United States has caught up with Australia in the country’s imported meat market, adding that the U.S. market share will continue to head upward.USMEF is a non-profit trade association working to create business opportunities abroad for U.S. beef, pork, lamb and veal. Headquartered in Denver, USMEF has offices in Seoul, Beijing, Tokyo, Shanghai and seven other cities around the world.“Korean consumers have become more accepting of American beef over the years as we have brought high-quality, premium meat products into the country,” Seng said. “Although Australia is the still the largest beef exp

Dec 22, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Korean consumers more accepting of US beef

Companies

Top managers responsible for Doosan's trouble, not new recruits

A captured image of Doosan Infracore’s English website. In contrast to its slogan, “At Doosan, people are the most important asset,” the company has dismissed hundreds of workers, including new recruits.By Lee Hyo-sikPark Yong-maanDoosan Group ChairmanDoosan Infracore, the construction equipment making unit of struggling Doosan Group, has been causing a stir lately over its plan to dismiss new recruits through a voluntary retirement program.Normally, the scheme is largely designed to lay off senior employees who get fat paychecks. But letting junior employees go clearly shows how dire the situation is for the company.Since its controversial dismissal plan was made public early last week, the company has been hammered by media outlets and the public for making young employees scapegoats for its ongoing trouble.Doosan said 704 workers out of its 3,041 workforce, or 23 percent, filed for voluntary retirement, including those who have been with the company for less than two years. The construction equipment maker refused to unveil how many junior employees expressed the

Dec 21, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Companies

W Rare by Windsor big hit for Diageo

By Lee Hyo-sikW Rare by Windsor, Diageo’s low-alcohol premium spirit drinkW Rare by Windsor, Diageo’s latest premium spirit drink launched in November, has been well received by Korean consumers who increasingly prefer lower-alcohol drinks because of health concerns.The product has an alcohol content of 35 percent, compared with 40 percent for conventional Scotch. Despite the lower alcohol content, W Rare by Windsor retains the flavor and smoothness of Windsor-branded products thanks to its cutting-edge blending technology, according to the world’s largest premium whisky maker.Its bottle was also designed to reflect the consumer trend to lower-alcohol drinks, the company said.In March, Diageo launched W Ice by Windsor (W Ice), which also has an alcohol content of 35 percent. Diageo has been writing a success story with W Ice by capitalizing on changing consumer tastes for low-alcohol spirits.The company expects W Rare will further boost its presence in Korea’s rapidly expanding spirit market.Diageo Korea CEO Cho Kil-soo said that “I am very proud and con

Dec 20, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Companies

Has AmorePacific grown too quickly?

Surveillance camera footage shows a man in the back seat assault a taxi driver in downtown Seoul on Dec. 6. The man was found to be an employee at AmorePacific, while the woman in the back also works for Korea’s largest cosmetics firm./ Captured image from YTNQuestions raised over sustainable growth as employees fail to catch upBy Lee Hyo-sikAmorePacific CEO Suh Kyung-baeAmorePacific, headed by CEO Suh Kyung-bae, has grown too quickly into one of the world’s top cosmetics makers in a short period of time, according to industry watchers, who raise questions over its sustainability.Unlike automakers, shipbuilders and other local manufacturers hit hard by the prolonged global economic downtown, Korea’s largest cosmetics maker has been booming in recent years on the back of China’s surging demand for made-in-Korean beauty products. Its revenue and operating profits have increased by double-digits.Amore has soared to be the seventh-largest listed company on the nation’s main KOSPI, ahead of Kia Motors, SK hynix, LG Chem., Hyundai Heavy Industries and many oth

Dec 20, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Companies

Gov't encourages companies to build plants abroad

Latest policy shift is feared to reduce domestic jobsBy Lee Hyo-sikThe government has decided to encourage domestic companies to head overseas and build production plants, even at the risk of endangering jobs in Korea.For years, policymakers have urged local manufacturers to expand production facilities here to create jobs rather than go overseas. But with Korea’s rising labor costs and other unfavorable business conditions, the government has no choice but to give up its “Made in Korea” policy drive and adopt the new “Made by Korea.”While announcing the 2016 economic policy plan, the Ministry of Strategy and Finance and other ministries said Wednesday they will build industrial complexes in China, Vietnam, Myanmar, Indonesia and other emerging Asian economies exclusively for domestic companies.Beginning in June, Land & Housing Corp. (LH), the state-run infrastructure developer, will be mobilized to build industrial complexes abroad, not only for large local companies, but also for small and medium enterprises.In addition, the so-called Korea Busines

Dec 18, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Companies

Kumho Tire wins design awards in Korea, US

Four award-winning Kumho Tire productsBy Lee Hyo-sikKumho Tire, Korea’s leading tire maker has won design awards both in Korea and the United States for four of its latest products.The company said Friday that its Sealant Tire and SOLUSU HA31 Tire received the 2015 Korea Good Design Awards a day earlier from the Korea Institute of Design Promotion (KIDP), the state-run industrial design promotion agency.The Sealant Tire, which won design awards in Germany and Japan earlier this year, received the KIDP CEO award and the SOLUSU HA31 Tire the KIDP main prize.With the awards, the two tires obtained a Good Design mark from KIDP, which guarantees their superiority in design, function and efficiency.The firm’s two other tires -- the ECSTA PS91 and the KRA50 -- won the 2015 North America Design Awards on Tuesday, it said.In cooperation with the European Centre for Architecture, Art, Design and Urban Studies, the Chicago Athenaeum Museum of Architecture and Design has been awarding a wide range of industrial goods for their designs since 1950.The ECSTA PS91 was developed for racin

Dec 17, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Kumho Tire wins design awards in Korea, US

Companies

Han Sung Motor supports young talented artists

Han Sung Motor CEO Ulf Ausprung speaks during a ceremony to mark the year-end exhibition of the firm’s “Dream Gream” campaign at the Horim Arts Center in southern Seoul, Wednesday. The largest Mercedes-Benz dealer in the country has been running the campaign since 2012 to support a group of elementary and middle school students who have artistic talent. The students have been drawing, painting and creating other art work in collaboration with professional artists. / Courtesy of Han Sung MotorBy Lee Hyo-sikHan Sung Motor, the largest Mercedes-Benz dealer in Korea, has been supporting elementary and middle school students who have artistic talent through its “Dream Gream” campaign since 2012.On Wednesday, the company held the 4th Dream Gream Year-End Exhibition at the Horim Arts Center in southern Seoul to showcase paintings and other art work created by 40 students this year. It also awarded them with certificates of participation in the program.Han Sung Motor has been running the Dream Gream program, helping young people from underprivileged families dev

Dec 17, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Han Sung Motor supports young talented artists

Companies

Integrated resort sector feared to be overcrowded

Scholars discuss the future of Korea’s integrated resort industry during a seminar at the National Assembly building in Yeouido, Tuesday. They urged the government not to issue more licenses for foreigner-only casino-led comprehensive resorts, expressing concerns of oversupply. / Courtesy of Paradise GroupGov’t urged not to issue more licenses for foreigner-only casinosBy Lee Hyo-sikA group of scholars are calling on the government to refrain from issuing more licenses for integrated resort complexes, which cater to Chinese and other foreign visitors.Citing their latest research, the scholars say three foreigner-only, casino-driven resorts -- two in the Seoul metropolitan area and one elsewhere -- will be enough in Korea to accommodate non-Korean travelers seeking to gamble, shop and use other leisure facilities here.This counters the government’s plan to select two more entities in February next year, allowing them to construct and run casinos and other facilities inside integrated resorts in Seoul and other locations. As of now, six companies are co

Dec 17, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Lee Hyo-sik

Read more

BAT Korea has new CEO

Doosan unlikely to get good price for machine tool biz

Korean consumers more accepting of US beef

Top managers responsible for Doosan's trouble, not new recruits

W Rare by Windsor big hit for Diageo

Has AmorePacific grown too quickly?

Gov't encourages companies to build plants abroad

Kumho Tire wins design awards in Korea, US

Han Sung Motor supports young talented artists

Integrated resort sector feared to be overcrowded

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