"Hotel and Food Service Business Off to a Slow Start... Catering Business Smooth Sailing" Ourhome's Global Business Faces Mixed Fortunes

Global First Hotel and Food Service Openings Delayed Due to COVID-19 Spread
China and Vietnam Catering Businesses Thrive... Number of Stores and Sales Increase Year-on-Year

On March 3, 2018, key officials from Ourhome and HTM pose at the groundbreaking ceremony of the HTM Hotel held in Haiphong.

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Saeng-hye] The global spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) has brought mixed fortunes to Ourhome, a comprehensive food service company, in its global business. While the opening of its first overseas hotel and dining establishments has been indefinitely postponed, causing a halt in business expansion, overseas catering facilities contracted before the COVID-19 issue continue to see steady growth in stores and sales.

According to Ourhome on the 9th, the hotel in Vietnam that was scheduled to open last month has been indefinitely postponed due to the worsening COVID-19 situation. In January 2018, Ourhome acquired the management rights for the ‘HTM Hotel,’ a business hotel with a total of 16 floors including 2 basement levels and 14 above ground, covering a total floor area of 6,744㎡, located on Le Hong Phong Boulevard, one of the prime central locations in Haiphong city.

Haiphong, considered one of Vietnam’s three major cities along with Ho Chi Minh and Hanoi, is rapidly emerging as a hub for transportation, logistics, and trade by developing world-class infrastructure such as the largest northern port in Vietnam, an international airport, and highways. It is adjacent to Ha Long Bay, a UNESCO World Heritage site, and the development of nearby tourist destinations such as Cat Ba Island has led to a surge in demand for business and tourist hotels.

Ourhome planned to take full charge of hotel operations, including room and food and beverage services, simultaneously with the opening of the HTM Hotel last month. Ourhome has operated three hotels in Seoul and Incheon, but this would have been its first time operating a hotel overseas.

The COVID-19 outbreak has also put a brake on its first global entry into the dining business. Ourhome recently indefinitely postponed the official opening of a Korean restaurant of about 270 pyeong (approximately 891 square meters) that had a soft opening in downtown Beijing, China. An Ourhome official said, "With confirmed COVID-19 cases in China exceeding 80,000, it is difficult to proceed with the official opening," adding, "We expect the official opening to be possible once the COVID-19 situation stabilizes." The Beijing store is significant as Ourhome’s first global dining establishment. Through this Korean restaurant in Beijing, Ourhome expressed its intention to contribute to expanding the presence of K-food in China by importing and serving authentic Korean set meals that preserve the taste of Korea.

However, the overseas group catering business is sailing smoothly without major damage despite the spread of COVID-19. Since entering the Chinese group catering market in 2010 as the first domestic company to do so, Ourhome currently operates entrusted and office catering facilities in 10 Chinese cities including Beijing, Nanjing, Guangzhou, Tianjin, and Yantai. An Ourhome official explained, "The number of stores in China has expanded from 35 last year to 40 currently," adding, "Although there was a sales decline in early Q1 due to the impact of COVID-19, a significant recovery has been made, maintaining sales at a level similar to the monthly average last year."

The number of stores in Vietnam also increased from 14 last year to 22 as of last month. Ourhome established a Vietnamese corporation in April 2017 and operates catering facilities. They run a 'V Food' corner offering local dishes and a noodle corner, as well as a counter selling authentic Korean food. An Ourhome official said, "Following plans to expand overseas business, we are sequentially opening group catering facilities contracted before the COVID-19 issue," adding, "Sales at the Vietnam stores have also increased by more than 100% compared to the same period last year."

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