Daesang Corp. President Myung Hyung-sup.

Daesang has become one of the nation’s representative household food brands with such products as the drink Hongcho and Sunchang Gochujang.(Photos:Daesang Corp)

Daesang has maintained a paradigm shift, focusing on profitability rather than external growth. The company’s efforts have paid off: Daesang made a feat of posting more than 100 billion won in operating profit in 2014 for the third year in a row. Daesasng saw its debt rate plunge from 140 percent at the end of 2011 to 92 percent at the end of 2014. The financially sound cycle resulted in upgrading its credit rating to A+.

Eyes Foundation to Reach Century Mark

Daesang, an entirely home-grown Korean company, has become one of the nation’s top household comprehensive food companies. It boasts the world’s top-class fermentation technology. It was established with Korean capital and its own technology in 1956.

Celebrating its 60th anniversary next year, Daesang keeps gaining growth momentum as one of the nation’s leading food makers. It’s doing this by venturing into such business portfolios as comprehensive food, bio and starch sugar businesses. 

Daesang originally started as the seasoning business.

Daesang’s 2015 management tenants are summed up as so: Laying a cornerstone to become a 100-year-old company through visible change and growth. The company has come up with its top three strategies to realize the management goals — expanding strategic global businesses, developing new businesses and products to spearhead markets, and expanding cash cows to secure future markets.

Global Market Expansion

The company’s expanding global businesses strategically reflect the fact that the domestic food market cannot grow further due to Korea having the lowest birth rate in the developed world. The company’s strategy is designed to ensure continued growth by expanding the global business that Daesang is now focusing on. The strategy concentrates on making inroads into foreign alcoholic beverage markets by taking advantage of such food businesses as red pepper paste and Hongcho vinegar drink. The company is stepping on the gas to establish itself as a material production company by exploring overseas production centers. 

Daesang is also attaching priority to developing new industries and products that control markets. The competition of the food market is getting fierce, and clients’ consumption patterns are changing fast. In this regard, the company plans to command a market leadership through the timely release of products tailored to meet clients’ consumption patterns and needs. Daesang is concentrating its energies and capabilities to explore ideas by mobilizing all marketing, R&D and other staff members. 

In order to expand its biggest strengths, Daesang spares no efforts to provide omnidirectional support to evolving such conventional cash cows as MSG and red pepper paste products. The company is accelerating efforts to conduct R&D activities to develop replacements of the conventional sources of revenue. 

Exploration of New Businesses, Products

The food business division plans to focus on exploring new businesses and products to boost growth momentum for the future. It will also aim to improve business the performances of low-profit businesses. The company plans to divide business portfolios into profit-oriented and growth-oriented ones, as well as having all divisions nurture and develop next-generation cash cow products. 

The starch sugar business plans to develop new B2B materials and substances, expand overseas platform bases, and establish a solid foundation to achieve a target of posting 100 billion won in overseas exports. The bio-business division plans to focus on securing a competitive edge in the global market in terms of prices, as well as improving B2B sales and marketing capabilities, and developing new products.