BTS label Hybe to explore biz in contents production, ad, beauty, entertainment facilities

[Source: Big Hit Music]

South Korea’s Hybe Co., label behind K-pop superstar BTS, will add cosmetics, food & beverages and tourism to its entertainment-focused portfolio by leveraging on its intellectual properties and global fandom of K-pop to diversify and bolster its revenue source.

According to entertainment industry sources on Tuesday, Hybe will present its plan to change corporate article to add advertising, publishing, and content distribution, production and export to its business sphere at the shareholders’ meeting due on Dec. 16.

Food and beverages, cosmetics and other non-entertainment businesses are also among the new business scope.

Shares of Hybe depressed lately on renewed concerns about a hiatus of BTS activities due to military service commitments by the members who are nearing the maximum conscription age gained a boost from the plan. They rose 1.34 percent to close Tuesday at 339,500 won ($287.83) after 5.5 percent loss in the previous session.

The business scope rewriting is understood as the company’s endeavors to expand its BTS-reliant business to others based on the global fandom of its entertainers. The company is responsible not just BTS but also Tomorrow X Together, Seventeen and Enhypen as well as artists under Ithaca Holdings the company took over in April.

Various collabo products such as bottled water, foods and cosmetics based on Hybe’s intellectual properties can be released.

“We’ve started with music and artists and has finally become a large platform loved in nearly 200 countries across the globe. The company no longer has a limitation to expand into commerce, game, original content, video, publishing and education,” said Bang Si-hyuk, founder and chairman of Hybe, last month.

[Source: SSG]

In August, Hybe released butter cookie “Butter” from bakery Bang & Bakers and bottled water “Aqua Wave with BTS” in limited packs in collabo with BTS.

Hybe in July merged with subsidiaries Hybe IP and Hybe 360, and their businesses in food and beverage manufacturing and sales business would be added to the parent company’s corporate article,” said a Hybe official.

Beauty and theme park are ventures for the future, and the company is not looking for M&As in the field for now, he added.

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