 |
Staff reporter
For all his billions of dollars in wealth, Lee Kun-hee turned out to be just like any proud father at the Las Vegas Consumer Electronics Fair last January. The Samsung Electronics chairman was flanked by his wife, son and heir apparent Lee Jae-yong, but he chose to put the spotlight on his two daughters.
``Let me advertise my daughters,'' the elder Lee said, while daughters Lee Boo-jin and Lee Seo-hyun stood by his side.
Everyone already knows that only son Lee Jae-yong, now chief operating officer of Samsung Electronics, is being groomed as the Samsung group's third-generation successor.
In recent months, the two daughters have been gaining influence, as both were promoted to executive positions at key Samsung affiliates last year.
Lee Boo-jin, the eldest daughter, is currently the senior vice-president of the Hotel Shilla, which operates a luxury hotel and duty-free shops, and Samsung Everland, which runs Korea's largest theme park and considered the de facto holding company for the Samsung Group.
Her younger sister Lee Seo-hyun is the senior vice-president of Samsung's fashion and textile affiliate Cheil Industries and the country's top advertising agency Cheil Worldwide.
With the added responsibility, some see this as the two women's growing influence in the Samsung group.
The sisters are already among the richest in Korea. In Forbes magazine's list of Korea's richest in 2009, the 39 year old Lee Boo-jin's net worth is pegged at $610 million, ranking 24, while the younger Lee Seo-hyun's net worth is estimated at $500 million, ranking 35.
Shilla and Everland
Lee Boo-jin, who has a bachelor's degree in Youth Education from Yonsei University, got her start in the Samsung Group's corporate social responsibility unit in 1995. In 2001, she started working at the five star Hotel Shilla, where her management skills were put to good use.
She has been widely credited with boosting Hotel Shilla's revenue by expanding into the duty-free business. The Shilla's revenue has reportedly grown by an average of 15 percent every year since she joined.
In 2009, the company's revenues hit 1.2 trillion won. Around 980 billion won or 80 percent of total revenues is attributed to its duty-free shops, which offer luxury brands such as Prada, Gucci, Marc Jacobs, Fendi and Tiffany's, in Seoul and at Incheon International Airport.
There seems to be an increasing focus on the duty-free business. Lee Boo-jin reportedly met with Bernard Arnault, CEO of the world's largest luxury goods company LVMH, when he visited Seoul in April. They reportedly discussed the possibility of opening a Louis Vuitton duty-free shop at Incheon International Airport.
Lee Boo-jin's appointment as executive director in charge of management strategy at Samsung Everland last year was seen as a keen move to make sure the Lee family scions are in the right management positions at its key affiliates.
 |
Lee Seo-hyun's expertise lies in fashion. She studied modern fashion design at the Parsons School of Design in New York, so it was only natural that she would enter Samsung's fashion business. She began working for Cheil Industries in 2002.
She currently leads the creative planning department for Cheil Industries' fashion business. Cheil already dominates the domestic market with 22 brands, including Bean Pole, FUBU and Rapido, but Lee's expertise has helped boost these brands' overseas image and sales.
Known for her sartorial flair, Lee Seo-hyun was also instrumental in opening a branch of the Italian multi-brand boutique 10 Corso Como in Cheongdam-dong in March 2008. The posh store is stocked with an eclectic mix of high-end fashion brands, art, designer items, books and music, and has a cafe, where many celebrities have been spotted dining.
She was also credited with helping bring several luxury brands to Seoul, such as American lifestyle brand Tory Burch, Scottish luxury knitwear label Pringle, Nina Ricci and Balmain.
Burch, an American designer, was in Seoul last week for the opening of the flagship store in Cheongdam-dong. She was quoted as saying she found the perfect partner in Cheil Industries to exclusively bring her classic ballerina flats, bags and accessories to the Korean capital.
As a sign of support for these fashion brands, Lee Seo-hyun, who is also being noticed for her sophisticated style, has been spotted at high-profile events at 10 Corso Como and the recent opening of the Tory Burch flagship store.
Aside from her duties at Cheil Industries, the 36-year-old Lee is also in charge of Cheil Worldwide's business planning division. Her experience in international markets has become useful in helping the advertising agency to expand its operations worldwide. Cheil Worldwide has been making moves to integrate its international business, especially after the acquisition of rising U.K. ad agency Beattie McGuinness Bungay last year.
![[INTERVIEW] North Korean defectors bear brunt of remittance scams](https://img.koreatimes.co.kr/upload/thumbnailV2/75c261156ac7415fad92dc1d7c1b30cf.jpg/dims/resize/178/optimize)
![[INTERVIEW] Foreign-born entertainers seek to revolutionize local industry](https://img.koreatimes.co.kr/upload/thumbnailV2/4a6b2bd3d23044d699dee3c5bb956863.jpg/dims/resize/178/optimize)
