Korea’s Hanssem to replace CEO to cope with struggling performance

Eugene Kim, head of operations at Korean private equity firm IMM Private Equity Inc. [Photo provided by Able C&C]

Hanssem Co., South Korea’s No. 1 kitchen and interior furniture company, has decided to replace its chief executive officer (CEO) to create a breakthrough in improving its struggling performance. The company is highly likely to appoint Eugene Kim, head of operations at Korean private equity firm IMM Private Equity Inc. as successor of CEO Kim Jin-tae.

According to multiple industry sources on Wednesday, Hanssem has internally nominated Kim as the new CEO. Kim also serves as the CEO of Able C&C Co., which operates the cosmetics brand MISSHA.

Her appointment is expected to take place after board approval on Thursday.

Kim is a computer science major who graduated from Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) and earned a master’s degree from Seoul National University‘s Graduate School of Business.

She worked at the Boston Consulting Group, Inc. (BCG) before joining IMM Private Equity in 2009, where she led the acquisition of KG Hollys F&B Co. and Lezhin Comics.

Speculations abound that IMM Private Equity, which acquired Hanssem in 2021 with Lotte Shopping Co., is replacing the current CEO as the company’s performance has remained sluggish since.

Hanssem posted an operating loss of 21.7 billion won ($16.93 million) last year amid a real estate slowdown. It was the first time that the company logged an annual loss since being listed on the stock market in 2002.

In the first quarter this year, the company posted an operating loss of 15.7 billion won. The company’s first-quarter sales were 469.3 billion won, down 10.8 percent from a year ago.

Hanssem is projected to post an operating loss of 5 billion won in the second quarter, according to a report by Korea Investment & Securities Co., marking four straight waters of losses.

The stock has also taken a nosedive.

IMM Private Equity acquired the management rights of Hanssem for 222,250 won per share. The stock price is now in the 40,000 won range.

In June last year, Kim said he would only accept a minimum wage until the stock price recovers to the 100,000 won range and tried to improve fundamentals through stock buybacks and digital transformation, but worsening performance has eventually forced him to step down in less than two years.