A view of Bibigo Wanggyoja (King-size Dumpling), produced by CJ Cheiljedang. (Photo: CJ Cheiljedang)

CJ Cheiljedang has seen its global sales surpass over half of the company’s total sales for the first time since its establishment. The fast confirms the standing of CJ Cheiljedang as a global food maker, experts say.

It was also the first time the company surpassed 20 trillion won in annual sales on a consolidated basis since its founding.

The 2019 business performance released by CJ Cheiljedang on Feb. 12 showed that the company recorded 22.352.5 trillion won on a consolidated basis, a 19.7 percent year-on-year jump and 896.9 billion won in operating profit, a 7.7 percent surge.

CJ Cheiljedang Group Chairman Lee Jay-hun has managed to secure liquidity thanks to across-the-board efforts to improve its financial structure, made at his behest.

Net debt, owed by CJ Cheiljedang, except the logistics business unit (CJ Logistics), stood at about 4.801.7 trillion won as of the end of 2019, a reduction of more than 2 trillion won over 6.935.3 trillion won in the end of 2019 Q3.

The net debt was similar to 4.502.5 trillion won as of the end of 2018 when the company acquired Schwan’s Company, the U.S. No. 2 frozen food maker.

The company’s disposing of idle assets contributed greatly to reducing its net debt. CJ Cheiljedang secured 1 trillion won worth of liquidity by disposing of land and buildings in Gayang-dong, Seoul.

The food business division saw sales surging 51.9 percent year-on-on to 8.010.5 trillion won last year.

The global processed food segment saw sales jumping more than four times year-on-year to 3.153.9 trillion won. Global processed food sales on other parts of the world, except about 2.2 trillion won in sales from Schwan’s Company, surged more than 40 percent year-on-year, on the back of the good business performances in China and Vietnam.

In Korea, CJ Cheiljedang had solidified its standing as a front-runner in the home meal replacement (HMR) segment. The company posted a more than two-digit growth in mainstay HMR products such as “Bibigo Juk (Porridge).”

Overseas sales of Bibigo Mandu (dumpling), produced by CJ Cheiljedang, came to 868 billion won, accounting for 63.5 percent of the company’s total sales in the segment.

It took one year for the company to see the portion of overseas sales top 60 percent since 2018 when the share of overseas sales surpassed half of total revenue.

A surge in Bibigo Mandu sales in the United States was noteworthy.

Bibigo Mandu sales in the United States amounted to 36.3 billion won last year, a nearby 50 percent jump.

The segment in the United States saw sales surpassing 200 billion for the first time last year and topping 300 billion this year. It was first time Bibigo Mandu sales in the United States exceeded those recorded in Korea - the selling of Bibigo Mandu worth 316 billion won.

In China, Bibigo Mandu sales stood at 92 billion, approaching the 100 billion won barrier.

Those in Vietnam came to 60 billion won with an annual average growth rate of over 100 percent in the recent three years. Bibigo Mandu sales in Europe and Japan also shot up.

CJ Cheiljedang have managed to develop products tailored to meet local consumers’ tastes by conducting a thorough market survey and analyzing consumers’ needs and culinary culture trends.

In the United States, the company developed “Chicken & Cilantro Mandu,” based on local culinary favoring.

In China, CJ Cheiljedang released “Bibigo Corn Wanggyoja” (King-size Dumpling) and “Bibigo Chinese Cabbage Wanggyoja,” by taking into account Chinese’s culinary habit of loving eating cabbage and corn.

The company has been expanding investment into R&D and infrastructure in the United States and China.