Smoothie King Korea buys parent company

Smoothie King Korea announced Monday that it has completed an M&A takeover of its U.S.-based parent company, making it the first Korean beverage chain to stage a takeover of its overseas head office.

According to the company, the takeover was finalized on July 7.

The Korean franchise of the beverage and health food chain was able to complete the process thanks to a 58 billion won ($50.9 million) investment from Standard Charted Private Equity, the National Pension Service, and other investors.

Communication between Smoothie King Franchises, Inc. founder and CEO Steve Kuhnau and the franchise’s current Korean head, Kim Sung-wan, was said to have played an important role during the acquisition, according to Korean news reports.

The first Korean store of the U.S.-based beverage chain opened its doors in Myeongdong in 2003. Since then, it has consistently been been a top player in the domestic beverage industry, recording about a 60 percent annual growth. It currently operates around 140 stores across the country.

The Korean branch has also ranked first in global sales during the past nine years.

The company expects profits of around 64 billion won in 2012.

Smoothie King Franchises, Inc. first opened in 1973. It currently operates around 700 stores around the world.

(renee@heraldcorp.com)