A day before announcement, Hanwha chairman's youngest son posts the plan on his Instagram

Hyundai Department Store said Wednesday it would compensate staff and partner companies suffering from a business void at Daejeon Hyundai Premium Outlet that caught fire last week that left seven deaths. The company will give 2.5 million won-3.5 million won ($1,760-$2,470) to around 1,000 managers and salespeople whose work has been suspended due to the post-fire shutdown. Refusing to disclose the exact number of staff and managers, a Hyundai Department Store official said “we will come up

Nongshim's Shinramyeon still No. 1; sales of bibimmyeon wane in summer due to heavy rain

SPC Group has opened three more Paris Baguette stores in Paris this year to expand its business in the European market, the South Korean food and beverage giant said Tuesday. The latest Paris Baguette store is set to open in Montparnasse, a major commercial district in the southern part of Paris on Tuesday, local time. The opening of Paris Baguette Montparnasse branch follows two branch openings in February in other parts of the French capital -- in Boieldieu and Corolles. With a floor area of 1

  As Korea transitions to the endemic stage of the COVID-19 pandemic, the online-focused retail industry is shifting toward offline stores to enhance customer experience, a report showed Tuesday. Although the vacancy rate rose in commercial districts during the pandemic, retail brands are eyeing prime spaces to open pop-up or flagship stores, according to a report from commercial real estate platform Cushman & Wakefield Korea. For instance, Apple opened its second store in a new buildin

La Boutique Bleue, a premium home spa care brand that launched in South Korea in 2021, introduced a non-fungible token certification service, the company said Friday. According to LBB, it has offered VIP membership cards in the form of NFTs to participants that took part in the launch event of the Italian luxury golf wear brand Filippo Piana in Seoul. LBB had collaborated with Filippo Piana in hosting the launch event by showcasing its newest product, Golden Camellia All Day Care Lotion, and off

South Korean food giant SPC Group said Sunday its coffeehouse-to-bakery brand Paris Baguette has ranked 25th among the best franchise brands evaluated by the US-based magazine Franchise Times. According to the Franchise Times Top 500, an annual ranking of the largest franchise brands by sales in the US, Paris Baguette's ranking jumped 13 spots from last year's 38th. Its ranking is the highest among Korean brands in the list this year. “Our 77 years of baking know-how, efficient bakery mana

South Korean retail-to-chemical giant Lotte Group said Thursday its overseas investment has exceeded 7 trillion won ($4.9 billion) this year. So far, the largest overseas project is Lotte Chemical’s Line Project, a $3.9 billion megasized petrochemicals production complex in Banten, Indonesia. It aims to produce 1 million metric tons of ethylene, 520,000 tons of propylene, 250,000 tons of polypropylene and other petrochemical products by 2025. The chemicals unit also plans to build its f

With fast-growing interest in eco-friendly lifestyles, South Korean food companies are expanding plant-based menu items and restaurants to cater to the growing global vegan population of some 180 million. Nongshim, the country’s leading instant noodle maker, said Thursday it has launched eight kinds of plant-based "cup rice" (rice bowl with toppings), and porridge, in partnership with vegan restaurant Doosoogobang. Instead of spicy meat, cup rice comes with toppings such as na

Global messaging app provider Line Corp. said Tuesday that Line Man Wongnai, its delivery platform operated in Thailand, has raised $265 million in a funding round led by Line Corp. and Singapore's sovereign wealth fund GIC. Other investors in the Series B funding include BRV Capital Management, PTT Oil and Retail Business Public Co., Bualuang Ventures and Taiwan Mobile. With the new investment, Line Man Wongnai's value topped $1 billion, becoming Thailand's largest tech startup unicorn. The

South Korean textile company Kolon Industries FnC said Wednesday it will launch an upcycled bag collection featuring pieces of stage outfits worn by BTS, through its fashion brand Re;cod, on Sept. 28. Upcycling refers to the creative reuse of old products to create new merchandise of greater quality or value. The limited edition collection includes three types of bags made from white industrial airbags. Each bag is attached with a piece from a concert outfit one of the seven BTS members wore. Th

Dairy product prices are likely to go up again as the price of locally produced milk is expected to increase as much as 500 won ($0.36) per liter, industry sources said Tuesday. Korea Dairy Committee, a private organization that oversees fair distribution of raw milk, carried out the first meeting between dairy farmers and dairy companies on Tuesday to negotiate the price of raw milk for this year. Even before the negotiation, the price of milk was widely expected to jump 300-500 won to 2,700-3,

South Korean households are feeling the inflation pinch as they brace for the annual kimchi-making season later this year. The average price for 10 kilograms of cabbages, the key ingredient for kimchi, surged on-year by 116.6 percent to 32,940 won ($23.7) as of Sept. 16, data from the state-run Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corp. showed. The price of 20 kg of white radish, which are fermented in spicy sauce and other flavorful seasoning, skyrocketed by 146.1 percent to 28,460 won in the

With inflation showing no signs of abating, South Koreans are likely to suffer more financial burden from eating out after the Chuseok holiday, as even low-cost foods like gimbap see a surge in price. The average price of gimbap, one of the more budget-friendly meals, in Seoul surged 2.6 percent to surpass the 3,000 won ($2.2) mark as of August compared to a month earlier, according to data from the Korea Consumer Agency. Among restaurant meals, the price of pork belly increased the most, fro

Pandemic-triggered social distancing rule may have offered ‘liberating’ experience for Koreans used to spending holiday with extended family, experts say