This article was displayed on the ChosunBiz MoneyMove (MM) website at 10:14 a.m. on Feb. 5, 2026.
Manjeon Food, the manufacturer of the premium gim (roasted seaweed) brand "Manjeon Gim," has begun a sale of its management control. With favorable market conditions continuing—last year's gim exports surpassed $1.1 billion, the highest on record—the firm appears to have judged that the fund's maturity this year makes it an optimal time to recoup investment.
According to the investment banking (IB) industry on the 5th, Kamur Private Equity (Kamur PE), a private equity fund (PEF) manager, recently chose a domestic accounting firm as its sell-side advisor and started procedures to sell management control of Manjeon Food. The sale target is 100% of the equity in Manjeon Food that Kamur PE holds through a special purpose company (SPC).
Kamur PE acquired Manjeon Food in 2021 by investing about 100 billion won. It structured a project fund with the Korean Federation of Community Credit Cooperatives (KFCC) as the anchor limited partner. At the time, founder Jeong Jae-gang, an advisor, sold his equity and stepped down, but his son, CEO Jeong Dong-hun, has participated in management by reinvesting in the SPC established by Kamur PE.
Considering that recent mergers and acquisitions (M&A) multiples for gim manufacturers—enterprise value to EBITDA—are in the 10 to 12 times range, the sale price is estimated at around 180 billion to 200 billion won. The sell-side plans to highlight cost competitiveness through internalizing raw material production and the strength of its premium brand power.
Since Kamur PE's acquisition, Manjeon Food's performance has been on an improving trend. Revenue, which was 51.5 billion won in 2021, steadily rose to 82.4 billion won in 2024. During the same period, operating profit jumped from 6.5 billion won to 9.5 billion won. Last year, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) reportedly came to 17.7 billion won on a cumulative basis through October.
Founded in 1979, Manjeon Food became the first in the industry to internalize dry gim production facilities, completing vertical integration from materials and supplies procurement to processing and distribution. It has moved beyond simple traditional gim to secure the capability to produce a variety of specialized dry gim formats, and it exports overseas, expanding its market dominance.
Private equity capital continues to flow into the gim market, which has established itself as a leading "K-food." Sung Gyung Food, recently acquired by Samchully Co., had also been owned by Affirma Capital, and Haenong Gim is owned by Gravity PE. KwangCheonKim Co., which is pursuing an initial public offering (IPO), also saw multiple PEF managers explore an acquisition of management control.