Pushing Overseas Business and Driving New Ventures... SPC Third Generation Management in Full Swing

Heo Jin-su Promoted to Global BU President
Overcame Pandemic to Pioneer Overseas Markets
Strengthened Business Through Organizational Restructuring
Appointed Locals as Country Heads

Heo Hee-su Vice President Leads New Business
Returns to Sector Nine After 3 Years
Introduces Quick Commerce 'Happy Butler'
Also Ventures into Vera Metaverse

Heo Jin-su, President of SPC Group Global BU

[Asia Economy Reporter Seungjin Lee] SPC Group is accelerating its third-generation management. Heo Jin-soo, the eldest son of Heo Young-in, chairman of SPC Group, has been promoted to president and will oversee overseas business, while the second son, Heo Hee-soo, who returned to management after three years as vice president of Sect Nine, a network system affiliate, will be in charge of new businesses, jointly responsible for the group's two major business areas.

Promotion of Eldest Son Heo Jin-soo to President

On the 30th, SPC Group announced that Heo Jin-soo, head of the Global Business Unit (BU), was promoted from vice president to president and that the global business organization would be reorganized. This personnel move was made to quickly transfer successful domestic business models to overseas divisions and to strengthen global business through country-specific responsible management.

President Heo has enhanced the brand awareness and competitiveness of Paris Baguette in key countries such as the United States, France, China, and Singapore. He led global business initiatives including the completion of the 'SPC Tianjin Factory' in China in March 2019 and the opening of the multi-purpose space Jewel Chang'i in Singapore in April of the same year. This year, alongside direct entry strategies, he has also pursued joint venture strategies, entering Cambodia and Indonesia consecutively.

Despite the global COVID-19 pandemic, his proactive efforts to pioneer overseas markets have been highly praised. Paris Baguette was ranked 38th among the top 50 franchise brands selected by the U.S. 'Franchise Times' this year. Among the brands in the top 50, Paris Baguette is the only one that is not a local U.S. brand.

Strengthening Global Business

SPC Group is also strengthening its overseas business through organizational restructuring. Most country managers for overseas markets will be appointed as local nationals. SPC Group explained that it has appointed talents familiar with local market conditions in the United States, France, Southeast Asia, as well as in upcoming markets such as Canada and the United Kingdom. The group plans to further strengthen responsible management by assigning CEO positions to those in charge of the rapidly expanding U.S. and Southeast Asian markets.

SPC Group appointed Jack Francis Moran, former head of Paris Baguette's U.S. subsidiary, as Vice President in charge of Global Business Support, and Vice President Seo Yang-seok, who oversees the group's management control, as head of Global Management Control to enhance communication and support between domestic and overseas subsidiaries.

Since its first overseas business launch in China in 2004, SPC Group has rapidly expanded its operations. It entered the U.S. market in 2005 and France, the birthplace of bread, in 2014. This year, it expanded into Cambodia and Indonesia, operating in seven countries worldwide. As of this year, the number of Paris Baguette stores operated overseas by SPC Group is 439, an increase of over 130 stores compared to 306 in 2017.

Heo Hee-su, Vice President of Sector Nine

Second Son Heo Hee-soo Leading New Businesses

The second son, Vice President Heo Hee-soo, also returned to management after three years and is leading new business initiatives. Heo returned to work as the responsible executive of Sect Nine, an SPC Group affiliate related to network systems.

One week after returning to management, Vice President Heo launched the quick commerce service 'Happy Butler.' The quick commerce market size was estimated at 300 billion KRW last year, and the industry expects it to grow to 5 trillion KRW by 2025. Heo is also known to have devoted significant effort to Baskin-Robbins' entry into the metaverse platform. Baskin-Robbins introduced 'Bara Factory' on Naver Zepeto. This initiative is notable for linking virtual world activities with real-world marketing. Vice President Heo is expected to continue leading SPC Group's new businesses such as digital marketing and quick commerce.

Heo joined Paris Croissant as a director in 2007 and has served as head of marketing at Paris Croissant and head of future business division at SPC Group's strategic planning office. The premium burger brand 'Shake Shack' is considered one of his representative achievements. The American sandwich brand 'Eggslut,' which entered Korea last year, is also one of Vice President Heo's management successes.

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