This article was displayed on the MoneyMove (MM) site of ChosunBiz at 10:53 a.m. on Sep. 9, 2026.
LOCK&LOCK Co., Ltd.'s largest market has shifted from Korea to Southeast Asia. After Southeast Asia's sales surpassed China's, they overtook Korea for the first time this year. As results improve, there is a view that conditions for the largest shareholder Affinity Equity Partners, which has been a "long-term investor" in LOCK&LOCK Co., Ltd. for nine years, to recoup its investment are improving.
According to the investment banking (IB) industry on the 9th, LOCK&LOCK Co., Ltd.'s Southeast Asia sales in the first half of this year surged 51.2% from a year earlier. That far outpaced the overall sales growth rate of 10.7% during the same period. Southeast Asia sales hit an all-time high for a first half and, surpassing Korea and China, became LOCK&LOCK Co., Ltd.'s largest sales market.
By country, Thailand's growth was the steepest. First-half sales in Thailand rose 79.5% from a year earlier. Vietnam increased 52.2%, and Indonesia 23.4%.
Until last year, Korea was LOCK&LOCK Co., Ltd.'s largest market. The 2025 sales mix by region was Korea 29%, Southeast Asia 24%, and China 23%. After Southeast Asia surpassed China, it overtook Korea this year, reversing LOCK&LOCK Co., Ltd.'s regional sales rankings. Outside Southeast Asia, growth in the United States stands out, with the U.S. subsidiary's first-half sales already reaching about 84% of last year's annual sales.
The Southeast Asia business grew with Vietnam at the center. LOCK&LOCK Co., Ltd.'s annual sales in Vietnam are understood to have increased to around 80 billion won. LOCK&LOCK Co., Ltd. expanded its sales network by using both e-commerce channels such as Shopee and TikTok and large retail stores. The product lineup, once centered on airtight containers, expanded to tumblers and small appliances.
LOCK&LOCK Co., Ltd. is applying in Thailand and Indonesia the sales approach it established in Vietnam as is. In Thailand, it expanded its offline sales network by supplying exclusive products to CP Extra, an affiliate of CP Group, the country's largest distribution company. The approach is to secure the distribution network first and then increase the products sold.
LOCK&LOCK Co., Ltd. has devoted efforts in recent years to improving profitability. After recording an operating loss in 2023, it streamlined domestic production facilities and raised the proportion of outsourced production. It also reorganized sales channels and overseas subsidiaries.
The effects of performance improvement began to appear last year. LOCK&LOCK Co., Ltd.'s operating profit on a consolidation basis last year was 18.1 billion won, up sharply from 1.7 billion won in 2024. The company expected this year's adjusted (normalized) operating profit, excluding one-off factors, to be 35.0 billion–36.0 billion won.
LOCK&LOCK Co., Ltd. is an asset invested through Affinity's fourth fund formed in 2013. In 2017, it acquired control of LOCK&LOCK Co., Ltd. for about 629.3 billion won, and in 2024 it injected an additional 115.0 billion won to voluntarily delist LOCK&LOCK Co., Ltd. through a tender offer and a comprehensive share swap.
The IB industry sees the timing drawing closer for LOCK&LOCK Co., Ltd. to come on the mergers and acquisitions (M&A) market as a sale candidate, but Affinity said it plans to focus more on boosting LOCK&LOCK Co., Ltd.'s corporate value.
An industry official said, "Although the fund's operation period has long surpassed 10 years, Affinity's official position is to support LOCK&LOCK Co., Ltd.'s continued value creation for value creation, irrespective of the fund's maturity or extension."