Lee Kuk-hwan appointed as Woowa Brothers new CEO

By Kim Hyun-bin

Woowa Brothers Chief Operating Officer (COO) Lee Kuk-hwan has been appointed as the company's new CEO.

Woowa Brothers, which operates Baedal Minjok, announced it has appointed COO Lee as its new CEO. The new CEO will be formally appointed in March next year after a shareholders' meeting and board of directors' resolution.

Newly nominated Woowa Brothers CEO Lee Kuk-hwan

After graduating from Yonsei University and Stanford University with an MBA, he joined Woowa Brothers in 2017 after working for SK Telecom, global consulting firm McKinsey and Fila Korea. Lee then served as head of the Baemin Riders Business, then as the head of the delivery business division and the head of Baemin's business division, playing a key role in helping the food delivery business and quick commerce services such as B Mart and Baemin Store make a soft landing in the market.

“The new CEO is an expert with a strong insight in overall business management, including business strategy establishment, operation and risk management,” a Woowa Brothers official said. “As each business Lee was in charge of has been proven with clear performance, we will exert our capabilities to make Baedal Minjok a platform that provides the best service in this highly volatile market.”

CEO Kim Bom-jun, who has led Woowa Brothers for the past three years, has politely declined the offer for another term. Kim, a former CTO before becoming CEO, is evaluated as having solidified Woowa's industry lead amid the fierce market competition while creating the foundation for sustainable growth for the future.

Kim plans to stay on as an adviser to improve product capabilities and leadership at Woowa Brothers.