The era of second and third-generation management in South Korea’s distribution industry has officially begun. Amid the ongoing complex crisis across the industry, these successors are stepping up as part of “responsible management” to overcome the challenge. The industry predicts that they will now begin to take earnest steps to prove their management capabilities.
According to industry insiders on March 28, Kim Nam-jung, vice chairman of Dongwon Group, was promoted to chairman during a board meeting that day, marking his first promotion in 10 years. The newly appointed chairman, Kim, is the second son of Kim Jae-chul, the founder of Dongwon Group, and was appointed vice chairman in 2014. The position of chairman of Dongwon Group had been vacant for five years since honorary chairman Kim Jae-chul retired from frontline management in 2019, on the 50th anniversary of the company’s founding.
Kim graduated from Korea University with a degree in Sociology and joined Dongwon Industries as a sales employee in 1998. Since then, he has held various positions, including head of the marketing strategy team at Dongwon F&B, manager of the management support office at Dongwon Industries, manager of the management support office at Dongwon Systems, Chief Operating Officer (COO) of StarKist in the United States, and vice president of Dongwon Enterprise, previously the holding division of Dongwon Industries.
After his promotion to vice chairman, Kim led more than 10 mergers and acquisitions (M&As) over 10 years, building a value chain across four major business areas of fisheries, food, materials, and logistics. The investment in the last four years alone amounted to over 1.3 trillion won.
Dongwon Group plans to accelerate innovation for the future and create a sustainable growth structure through quick decision-making and bold investments following Kim’s promotion.
“I will inherit the achievements and management philosophy of honorary Chairman Kim Jae-chul, who has led Dongwon Group for the past 50 years, and discover future growth engines through bold investments,” said Kim. “I will make the company loved and trusted by all stakeholders, including customers, employees, partners, and shareholders.”
Chung Yong-jin, vice chairman of Shinsegae Group, was promoted to chairman on March 8. The promotion comes 28 years after he joined the company at the end of 1995, and 18 years after he was named vice chairman in 2006.
Shinsegae Group described the appointment as a decision to “break through” the rapidly changing environment with Chung at the center. Chung’s mother, Lee Myung-hee, will support him from behind as group executive chairwoman but will retain her position as the head of Shinsegae Group.
Shinsegae’s E-Mart achieved record sales of 29.4 trillion won last year but fell short of Coupang’s 31.8 trillion won in sales, losing the top spot in the industry. It also posted its first operating loss on a consolidated basis due to significant losses at its construction subsidiary, Shinsegae E&C, and E-Mart’s operating profit on a separate basis fell 27.3% year-on-year to 188 billion won.
Chung has paused his social media engagement to focus on addressing the crisis. Late last year, he revamped the strategy management unit into a function-oriented “control tower” and called for significant management innovation. Emart Inc., affiliated with Shinsegae Group has recently been accepting voluntary retirement applications for the first time in its history.
The chairman is not yet on the board of directors. At Emart’s annual shareholders’ meeting held on Mar. 28, his appointment as an inside director was not on the agenda.
BGF Group (BGF) Chairman Hong Seok-joh’s eldest son Hong Jung-kook, BGF President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) was elevated to BGF Vice Chairman and BGF Retail Vice Chairman on Feb. 2.
BGF Group said that the newly promoted Vice Chairman has contributed to identifying new growth bases across the group and strengthening its global capabilities through the overseas expansion of CU, a convenience store brand operated by BGF Retail. With the latest promotion, the group plans to actively foster new growth engines, strengthen the competitiveness of its convenience store business, and enhance the responsible management of its key affiliates.
Late last year, Shin Yu-yeol, the third-generation heir of the LOTTE family, was promoted to Senior Managing Director at LOTTE Corporation. Shin, who joined LOTTE’s Japanese operations in 2020 was appointed as an executive of LOTTE Chemical Japan in May 2022. In August same year, Shin took on the role of co-CEO at Lotte Strategic Investment (LSI). Later in the same year, in December, he was elevated to the position of executive director at LOTTE Chemical. These occurred within less than a year for each promotion.
The senior managing director at LOTTE Corp. is currently leading new businesses while serving as the head ofthe Future Growth Office at LOTTE Holdings and the Global Strategy Office at LOTTE Biologics. The group’s new businesses are categorized into four areas: health and wellness, mobility, sustainability, and its new life platform. Shin was appointed as an inside director of Lotte Biologics on Mar. 5. This is the first time he has become a registered executive at a South Korea-based affiliate of LOTTE Corp.
Kim Dong-sun, head of strategic management at Hanwha Galleria and the youngest son of Hanwha Group Chairman Kim Seung-youn took the helm of vice president at Hanwha Galleria in a regular executive reshuffle last year. Kim has been active in expanding new business areas after establishing the company’s new business strategy in February 2022.
In addition to signing a deal to bring the American fast food chain focused on hamburger company Five Guys to South Korea, he recently acquired the U.S.-based robot pizza brand, “Stellar Pizza” through Hanwha Foodtech, a subsidiary of Hanwha Hotels & Resorts. He is also planning to open Pasta X, a pasta restaurant that combines food technology, in the Gourmet 494 Hannam’s food section.
Samyang Roundsquare also promoted Jeon Byung-woo, the eldest son of Vice Chairman Kim Jung-soo and third-generation owner, from chief strategy officer (CSO) to managing director. Jeon is in charge of the strategy of Samyang Roundsquare and the head of Samyang Foods’ new business division. In July last year, he pushed for a corporate image (CI) overhaul and established a ramen task force (TF) team under his direct supervision to plan the new brand “Maptaeng” and participate in the entire process, including design and advertising.
In addition, Daemyung Sono Hospitality Group’s second-generation vice chairman Seo Jun-hyuk was promoted to chairman of Daemyung Sono International last year. Choi Jun-ho, the eldest son of Fashion Group Hyungji CEO Choi Byung-oh was promoted to executive vice chairman of the group late last year.
This article was originally published on March 28, 2024.
