Samyang heir faces post-Buldak test

Calling Samyang Foods’ Buldak a game changer might not be sufficient to comprehensively describe the impact of its megahit spicy instant noodle brand on the Korean ramyeon maker.

On the back of strong Buldak sales in recent years across the globe, Samyang Foods’ annual revenue nearly quadrupled over the past five years while its market capitalization jumped by almost 20 times.

Although the company’s short-term outlook seems promising as its sales and operating profit continue growing, eyes are on Chun Byung-woo, Samyang Foods’ 31-year-old third-generation heir and chief operating officer, to lead the post-Buldak era in the mid- to long-run.

“Chun was very close to his grandfather Chun Joong-yoon, the late honorary chair and founder of Samyang Foods, and witnessed the latter’s business principles from up close,” said a food industry official.

“As Chun spent much time together with the founder since his childhood days, he says his grandfather is the person he looks up to the most, looking to follow the founder’s footsteps.”

Chun, the eldest and only son of former Samyang Foods Chair Chun In-jang and Samyang Foods Vice Chair Kim Jung-soo, joined Samyang Foods in 2019 after graduating with a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from Columbia University.

When Chun joined Samyang Foods, the awareness and popularity of Buldak spread rapidly worldwide as an online challenge to eat an entire cup of the capsaicin-heavy instant noodles went viral.

He accompanied his mother Kim, largely credited with buldak's creation, around the globe to bolster his management capabilities.

Chun unveiled Samyang Roundsquare, a new group name for the food conglomerate, in September 2023, marking his debut in front of the press. Pointing out that “round” means food and culture that nourish and connect people, while “square” refers to scientific technology and innovation, he vowed to make customers’ lives healthier and more fun by opening up a new paradigm in the food industry based on those two pillars.

Chun, who is known to have a relatively quiet personality, apparently is quite the bookworm, industry sources say. Leveraging his passion for studying, the next Samyang Foods leader faces a daunting task of developing the next Buldak.

Thanks to the Buldak brand’s worldwide fame, Samyang Foods shattered records last year, posting 2.35 trillion won ($1.6 billion) in sales and 524.2 billion won in operating profit with a 22.3 percent operating profit margin, an unparalleled figure in the food sector. About 80 percent of the total sales were generated outside of Korea.

While Korean food companies envy Buldak’s overseas success, Samyang Foods and Chun have so far not been able to replicate it. Two years since the company launched two new brands — spicy soup noodle MEP and instant pasta Tangle — they remain a long way from being considered the next Buldak series.

Chun has taken the helm of Samyang Foods’ health care business unit to implement a better-balanced product portfolio as a do-it-all food enterprise. The nutrition business, which is under the health care business unit, however, turned in only 2.9 billion won in sales last year, up 11.2 percent from 2024. Samyang Foods said it planned to improve the quality of its health product brands by upgrading their quality and increase marketing activities to to improve its standing the health food sector.

“The third-generation heirs of family businesses, especially in the food industry, usually are dealt with a steady seller or more,” said an official at a food company.

“So Chun’s mission is to figure out the next megahit product. He may have more time than other struggling food companies due to the Buldak brand’s still-growing popularity. But no one knows when the Buldak frenzy will calm down.”

Although Chun is the youngest third-generation heir of a family-controlled food business to have been promoted to an executive, market watchers expect no toward succession.

Chun holds a 0.59 stake in publicly-traded Samyang Foods while his father and mother — chair and vice chair of Samyang Foods — own a 3.13 percent stake and a 3.76 percent stake, respectively. Samyang Roundsquare, the ramyeon maker’s unlisted holdings firm, has a 35.48 percent stake in Samyang Foods. Chun, his father and mother each hold a 24.2 percent stake, a 15.9 percent stake and a 32 percent stake in Samyang Roundsquare.

“Vice Chair Kim or former Chair Chun may begin handing over parts of their shares in Samyang Roundsquare in phases, and the Chun family will have to come up with ways to pay hefty gift taxes,” said a local tax accountant.

“Chun could buy back some of Samyang Roundsquare’s 27.9 treasury shares, or it could retire them. The family may turn to utilizing assets from the firm’s affiliates.”