Nongshim appoints new CEO to spur global markets

K-pop girl group aespa promote Nongshim's Shin Ramyun instant noodles after being appointed as the company's global ambassador on Wednesday. Courtesy of Nongshim

Nongshim's newly appointed President-CEO Jo Yong-chul / Courtesy of Nongshim

Instant noodle and snack giant Nongshim named its new CEO on Friday.

The company said it will promote Jo Yong-chul, vice president of the company’s sales division, as the president and CEO, effective Dec. 1. His promotion will be finalized after a shareholder meeting in March next year.

Jo’s appointment has largely been attributed by his recent experience in expanding Nongshim’s global markets. Earlier this year, he was promoted to the sales division’s top position and began leading tasks for Nongshim’s promotion overseas.

Jo is now expected to further boost Nongshim's shares in global instant noodle and snack markets and secure the company's market presence worldwide. The company’s exports this year accounted for 40 percent of its entire sales, centering on its bestseller Shin Ramyun. The figure is lower than Samyang Foods, another major instant noodle company here, which has seen this year 84 percent of its entire sales come from its global markets, thanks to the global popularity of its instant noodles brand, Buldak.

"Jo is a global market expert with rich experiences, having acquired keen senses as to a company’s field operations overseas," Nongshim said in a statement. "Appointing Jo was our decision to respond to the fast-paced shift among global food trends and prepare a sustainable foundation for the company’s future growth in parallel with global standards.”

Nongshim, founded in 1965, has long dominated the country's domestic instant noodle market and is currently pursuing its promotion globally. On Wednesday, it appointed K-pop girl group aespa as its global ambassador to promote the company’s instant noodle products.

With the catchphrase “Spicy Happiness in Noodles,” the girl group's worldwide fandom is expected to carry the brand through its global tours, the company said. In 2023, aespa released the hit song “Spicy” under its third mini album, garnering 170 million views on YouTube with its official music video.

Nongshim is also continuing to leverage brand recognition gained through the wildly popular Netflix animated film “KPop Demon Hunters,” which featured instant noodles, snacks and other products that resembled Nongshim’s products and generated wide buzz. The company last month partnered with Netflix and collaborated on products featuring characters from the film, promoting the efforts on giant digital screens at New York City's Times Square.

In Japan, local news outlet Nikkei Trendy earlier this month selected Nongshim’s Shin Ramyun Toomba flavor among the country’s top 30 hit products of the year. Nongshim said it was the first time a Korean instant noodle brand was selected for the chart, demonstrating Nongshim's global brand power in the Japanese market.