Samsung, LG struggle to revive slowing home appliance business

People visit Samsung Electronics' booth during CES 2026 in Las Vegas, Jan. 4. Courtesy of Samsung Electronics

Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics are scrambling to revive their slowing home appliance businesses, shifting strategies to regain ground lost to Chinese rivals.

Samsung Electronics said Monday it has appointed its global chief marketing officer, Lee Won-jin, as the new head of the company's Visual Display (VD) business, which handles TV and other display-related operations.

Lee will replace Yong Seok-woo, who has led the business since November 2023. Yong will become an adviser to Roh Tae-moon, head of Samsung’s Device Experience division, which includes VD and mobile device businesses.

Lee Won-jin, Samsung Electronics' new head of Visual Display business / Courtesy of Samsung Electronics

Lee is a marketing and software service specialist who joined Samsung in 2013 from Google. Before serving as global chief marketing officer, he was credited with successfully establishing Samsung TV Plus, a free ad-supported streaming service, which diversified the company’s device-focused business into a platform-based model.

“Drawing on his track record of business success and market insight, he is expected to spearhead business turnarounds and identify new growth areas, thereby further strengthening the competitiveness of the visual display business," the company said in a press release.

The appointment was unusual, as the company typically carries out management reshuffles around December, reflecting urgency to address risks of falling behind amid intensifying competition from Chinese rivals in the TV market.

Samsung Electronics’ TV and other home appliance business reported disappointing earnings in recent months.

The VD and home appliance businesses posted 100 billion won ($67.9 million) and 600 billion won of operating loss in the third and fourth quarter of last year, respectively. It returned to a 200 billion won operating profit in the first quarter of this year, but this does not mark a clear rebound, as the businesses have shown similar swings in recent years.

Against this backdrop, the company has opted for a strategy centering on streamlining, keeping its focus on premium segments while outsourcing lower-margin products to external manufacturers and design partners.

Last month, the company shared with employees a plan to halt in-house production of lower-margin products such as dishwashers and microwave ovens and shift them to third-party manufacturers, while continuing to produce higher-margin items such as refrigerators and washing machines.

At the same time, the company is mulling the shutdown of its Malaysia plant, which has served as a key overseas production base since opening in 1989. It is also reportedly considering halting sales of home appliances and TVs in China, although the company has yet to officially confirm this.

Instead, the company said its VD business will double down on high-margin products such as artificial intelligence (AI) TVs, while stepping up efforts to expand its services and operating system businesses. The home appliance division will shift its focus to profitability by strengthening premium product sales and securing more orders for AI data center heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems.

“Profitability is coming under pressure amid intensifying global competition, as well as tariffs and broader geopolitical risks,” the company said on TV and home appliance businesses during its earnings call on April 30. “We are restructuring our business by focusing on core operations, while exploring various options to diversify our revenue streams. More concrete plans will be shared with the market once finalized.”

Models promote LG Electronics' home appliances at the 2026 World IT Show at Coex, Seoul, April 22. Courtesy of LG Electronics

Meanwhile, LG Electronics posted solid earnings from its home appliance and TV businesses in the first quarter of this year, but is also facing mounting challenges, as prolonged geopolitical tensions are expected to weigh on business operations while Chinese competitors continue to narrow the gap through cost efficiency.

To address challenges, LG Electronics plans to compete by globalizing its production base. During its earnings call on April 29, the company said it will “leverage manufacturing ecosystems in low-cost countries to build a cost structure competitive with Chinese rivals.”

Beyond cost competitiveness, the company also plans to focus on areas where it has a competitive edge with a focus on business-to-business operations and home appliance subscription.

Since LG Electronics does not have reliable cash cows similar to Samsung Electronics' memory and semiconductor businesses, the company is also working to secure future growth engines such as robots and data center chillers. The company said it plans to begin mass production of actuators for robots in the first half of the year, and expects to reach 1 trillion won in revenue from data center chillers earlier than expected.