Binggrae takes over Haitai Icecream

Korean food and beverage giant Binggrae said Wednesday it has acquired Haitai Icecream, a subsidiary of Haitai Confectionery & Food, for 140 billion won ($115 million).

The exact date of the acquisition will be fixed after details are sorted out.

Haitai Confectionery & Food began its ice cream business in 1970 by rolling out Bravo Cone. In January, it was spun off as a separate entity.

Following the acquisition, Binggrae is likely to become No. 1 in the confectionery industry, with its annual revenue expected to jump to 500 billion won. Haitai Icecream ranked No. 4 with annual sales of 180 billion won last year.

“We expect to create synergies with our existing ice cream division with Haitai Icecream’s products that are already familiar to customers, such as Bravo Cone, Nougatbar and Babambar,” a Binggrae official said.

“We also expect to expand our business overseas, with the global distribution network.”

While Haitai Icecream has many steady sellers, Haitai Confectionery & Food is ending its ice cream business to improve its financial structure, according to industry sources.

Haitai Confectionery saw its revenue jump as its Honey Butter Chips saw explosive sales in 2014, posting 792.8 billion won in 2016.

But the overall sales of the ice cream market remained in a slump. The company continued to see its annual sales slump to 743 billion won in 2017 and 706.3 billion won in 2018.

“We will concentrate our core competency on enhancing market competitiveness and profitability and improving stock value,” a Haitai Confectionery official said.

By Jo He-rim (herim@heraldcorp.com)