[IPO Spotlight] WiniAide, Seller and Rental of Dimchae, Aims for KOSDAQ Listing Within the Year

[Asia Economy Reporter Park So-yeon] Winia Aid, which operates home appliance stores and service centers for Daeyu Winia Group's Winia Dimchae and Winia Electronics, is planning to go public on the KOSDAQ within this year.

According to the investment banking (IB) industry on the 17th, Winia Aid has signed an underwriting agreement with Shinhan Investment Corp. aiming for a listing in the second half of this year and is currently conducting due diligence. Shinhan Investment plans to complete the due diligence, review and supplement listing-related issues, and file a preliminary review application with the Korea Exchange (KRX) within the first half of the year.

A Shinhan Investment official said, "We are currently conducting due diligence on Winia Aid," adding, "Winia Aid is a company with a diverse portfolio including retail stores, service businesses, and logistics, so we expect the listing to be possible within this year."

Winia Aid was established in July 2019 through the merger of Daeyu Winia Service and Daewoo Electronics Service. It sells products from Winia Dimchae and Winia Electronics through over 200 exclusive distribution stores nationwide. It also operates more than 100 service centers.

It also runs the largest Apple service center in Korea. In addition to servicing BlackBerry mobile phones and Sony's console game devices, it serves as a repair center for overseas companies with insufficient domestic service centers, such as Dyson, Electrolux, Tefal, and Braun. It also operates unmanned laundromats (Winia24), call centers, logistics, and overseas export operations.

Winia Aid aims to achieve a listing within this year, leveraging strong performance driven by increased demand for home appliances due to COVID-19. It recorded sales of 310.4 billion KRW and operating profit of 13.2 billion KRW the year before last, and its cumulative sales for the first three quarters of last year were 285.4 billion KRW with an operating profit of 19.3 billion KRW. Although the full-year results are not yet available, the cumulative operating profit for the first three quarters has already surpassed the previous year's level.

Winia Aid is expected to actively invest the funds raised through the listing into expanding new businesses such as home appliance rentals and home care services. Since the end of last year, Winia Aid has started subscription services including rentals and regular deliveries in partnership with Kakao. Products offered with rental and care services include Winia Dimchae's Dimchae kimchi refrigerator, Winia air conditioners, Dimchae Cook pressure rice cookers, and Winia air purifiers. Subscription products are planned to expand to include kimchi, masks, and more.

The largest shareholder of Winia Aid is Winia Dimchae. At the end of last year, Winia Dimchae additionally acquired 234,912 shares of Winia Aid from Winia Electronics for about 36.9 billion KRW. As a result, Winia Dimchae's stake increased from 27.43% to 51%. Winia Dimchae stated that the purpose of acquiring Winia Aid shares was to "secure the largest shareholder status." Accordingly, the shareholding structure was adjusted to Winia Dimchae (51%), Winia Electronics (28%), and Daeyu Holdings (9%).