Binggrae, Acquirer of Haitai Ice Cream... Surpasses Lotte Confectionery to Become the Actual No.1 in the Ice Cream Industry

Haitai Ice Cream Leads in Actual Profits
Plans to Expand Binggrae Market Share to 45%
Accelerates Global Business Through Overseas Distribution Network

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Saeng-hye] Binggrae has risen to become the de facto number one in the ice cream industry by acquiring Haitai Ice Cream, surpassing Lotte Confectionery.

On the 1st, Binggrae announced that it had signed a stock purchase agreement to acquire Haitai Confectionery & Foods and Haitai Ice Cream through a board resolution made the previous day. The shares acquired by Binggrae on that day are 1 million common shares, representing 100% of Haitai Ice Cream, with an acquisition amount of 140 billion KRW. The final acquisition timing will be decided based on the confirmation of detailed matters.

Haitai Ice Cream is a corporation newly established by Haitai Confectionery & Foods through a physical division of its ice cream business unit in January. Haitai Ice Cream's sales last year were in the 180 billion KRW range, making it one of the Big 4 in the domestic ice cream industry. Since 2013, it has owned several steady seller brands, including the continuously customer-loved brand "Bravo Cone."

This acquisition is expected to cause a significant shift in the market share rankings within the ice cream industry. Currently, Lotte Confectionery holds the top position in the ice cream industry, followed by Binggrae, Lotte Foods, and Haitai Ice Cream. According to the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation and Nielsen Korea, based on sales in the third quarter of last year, Lotte Confectionery's market share in the domestic ice cream market reached 31%. Binggrae secured a 29% market share, closely trailing Lotte Confectionery. Following them are Lotte Foods (17%), Haitai Ice Cream (16%), H?agen-Dazs (3.6%), and Lotteria (0.16%).

In terms of sales, Lotte Confectionery leads with 139.869 billion KRW, about 10 billion KRW ahead of Binggrae's 130.065 billion KRW. Considering the presence of Haitai Ice Cream, Binggrae acquired 100% of the shares while maintaining the corporation as is, but when factoring in actual profits, Binggrae's future market share is expected to expand to 45%. This calculation suggests that Binggrae will emerge as the unrivaled number one company, outpacing Lotte Confectionery by an 18 percentage point margin.

Regarding this, an industry insider said, "On the surface, the two-power structure between Lotte Confectionery and Binggrae will continue, but in reality, the market is expected to be reorganized into a 'dual structure' where Binggrae holds half of the market share."

A Binggrae representative stated, “We expect to create synergy with the existing ice cream business division by utilizing nationally familiar brands owned by Haitai Ice Cream such as Bravo Cone, Nugaba, and Babamba,” adding, “In particular, we anticipate further expanding our global business through Binggrae’s overseas ice cream distribution network.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.