Nongshim owner family's third generation, Vice President Shin Sang-yeol, 33, was appointed as an inside director on the 20th. As responsibility management takes full hold, the task of delivering results in business diversification and global expansion is also coming to the fore.
Nongshim approved the agenda to appoint Vice President Shin as an inside director at the 62nd regular shareholders meeting held at its headquarters in Sindaebang-dong, Dongjak-gu, Seoul, on the 20th. Inside directors hold authority accompanied by legal liability. After the shareholders meeting ended that day, Nongshim Chairman Shin Dong-won, 68, responded to reporters' questions about appointing Vice President Shin as an inside director, saying, "Although at a young age, the affection for the company is great and the effort shown led me to judge that the qualifications are sufficient," and "Not only for the mid- to long-term vision strategy but also in several institutional sectors, roles are being performed."
Vice President Shin is the grandson of the late Chairman Shin Chun-ho and the eldest son of Chairman Shin Dong-won. After graduating from Columbia University in the United States with a degree in industrial engineering, Shin joined the company in 2019 as a staff member and went through assistant manager, Director General, senior managing director, and executive vice president. After being promoted to vice president in Jan., Shin has led the future business office, overseeing investment, mergers and acquisitions (M&A), and global business strategy. Shin is regarded as a key figure leading the execution of Nongshim's mid- to long-term growth strategy, "Vision 2030."
Nongshim posted sales of 3.5143 trillion won and operating profit of 183.9 billion won last year, but about 80% of sales come from the ramen business. The "Vision 2030" goal to reach 7.3 trillion won in sales and a 10% operating margin by 2030 and to raise the share of overseas sales to more than 60% is also not easy to achieve with the existing business structure alone.
Alongside ramen, Nongshim is pushing a "dual core" strategy to grow its snack business and is expanding distribution of coffee and confectionery products in collaboration with Nestle Korea, but some say quick results are hard to come by given the mature, entrenched competition in the market. Investment is also expanding in future businesses such as health functional foods and smart farms, but it remains in the early stages.
Global expansion is also a major task. After establishing a European subsidiary in the Netherlands last year, Nongshim plans to set up a local subsidiary in Russia this year. Through this, the company seeks expansion in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) region. The industry is watching to see whether the pace of Nongshim's structural overhaul will accelerate with Vice President Shin joining the board. A distribution industry official said, "How quickly the ramen-centered structure is shifted and whether visible results are delivered overseas and in new businesses will determine whether third-generation management of the owner family takes root."
Meanwhile, the shareholders meeting ended in about 30 minutes. Nongshim CEO Lee Byung-hak said in remarks, "We have set this year's management guideline as 'Global Agility & Growth' and will strengthen the foundation for growth," adding, "Based on results, we will also do our best to enhance shareholder value."
To that end, Nongshim plans to continue delivering results centered on strategic countries such as the United States and China, while strengthening the foundation for expanding into new strategic markets. The company also plans to establish a stable supply system between the Noksan new export plant and overseas subsidiaries, and to advance global marketing and sales capabilities to drive qualitative growth in the domestic market.