Chairman Koo Bon-moo of LG Group urged the development of products that would change market patterns, saying that new products have been produced, but the market patterns have yet to be changed.

He made the remark at the group’s executives meeting held on May 14 at the Twin Tower in Yeouido, Seoul, with over 300 LG executives in attendance, the group’s largest such meeting.

Last September, the chairman called for leading the market and his remarks at the Yeouido meeting can be taken as his summary of the group’s performance in the eight months since his last meeting with the executives.

Koo said they have done a good job of improving existing products, and of late increases in efforts to greatly improve the products qualities further, but, he said, that was not enough to shake up the market to change the patterns. “We ought to develop the products that would create their own markets,” the chairman urged. For example, the smartphones’ competitive quality has been improved greatly, but they still have a long way to go to find their own stable markets.

Officials of the group said it is a very basic matter to develop more refined products of higher quality to beat rivals in a competitive market, especially ones that would change the lifestyle of the customers and, thus, restructure the market in the end.

Apple’s iPhone and Toyota’s hybrid car, the Prius, are a good example of products that created their own markets.

Koo went on to note that they ought to keep three key things in mind in order to take action on the subjects he mentioned. First, concentration and selection, as the time in which you will win or lose is very important and only deep concentration and steady development will secure the technologies before rivals do. Another important factor is that LG products should be able to make customers’ lives more comfortable through experiencing new things. He said they ought to continue to challenge themselves through creative efforts.

Koo also stressed the construction of infrastructure such as those for marketing efforts and supply capacity on the same level as the newly improved LG products.

He also said now is the time to find out if LG is ready to secure domination of the markets for its products by checking, especially, its employment numbers and the results of investments made early in the year to see if they are on the right track for the targeted year-end results in conjunction with cooperative firms.

During the seminar for the executives in September 2012, Koo urged all executives to see that the excellent products are developed and marketed to lead the markets. He said that their performance ratings would be made based on how well they have done with their products in the markets.

Following the chairman’s remarks at the seminar, LG affiliates tried to make market-leading products and create products that customers want before any other company does.

LG Chemical, for one, tried to keep its top position in the auto electric battery market and LG Electronics became the first firm to produce and market OLED TVs in January.

Koo continued to urge the group’s executives to focus on customer satisfaction during the seminar held in March this year above and beyond the call to rank first in the industry. He said the passion and courage to produce top products should fill the minds of all executives.

“Let’s find new customer values from the strict point of view of the customers and change quality, marketing, and service with reform always in our minds every day,” urged the chairman.

LG Group has held the Consensus Meeting presided over by Chairman Koo in June and November each year since 1989.