"Seokhwa Enterprises in Leisure Business?"... Kumho Petrochemical Wipes Away Concerns with Consecutive Resort Profits

Kumho Resort Panorama

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Dae-yeol] Kumho Resort recorded a profit in the 1 billion KRW range in the second quarter and continued to generate similar-scale profits in the third quarter, Kumho Petrochemical Group announced on the 13th. Since becoming part of Kumho Petrochemical Group last April, the trend of performance improvement has become clear, and the financial structure is also improving.

According to the company, the debt ratio was reduced from over 200% at the end of March, just before the acquisition of Kumho Petrochemical, to the 170% range as of the end of last month. Kumho Petrochemical explained, "This contrasts with the significant deficit recorded until the first quarter of this year before being incorporated into the group."

After acquiring Kumho Resort, which was practically in poor financial condition at the beginning of this year, Kumho Petrochemical Group formed an investment development task force (TF) consisting of nine departments including planning, development, finance, and marketing. Kim Sung-il, Executive Director of Kumho Mitsui Chemicals, was appointed as CEO, and financial expert Cho Hyung-seok, Managing Director, was assigned as Chief Financial Officer (CFO). The company stated, "We resolved the cash shortage by making strategic and swift investments," and added, "We are implementing profitability enhancement strategies through collaboration with group affiliates and are concretizing the blueprint for mid- to long-term strategies."

Kumho Resort Night View

First, the resort facilities were improved. Seorak and Hwasun Resorts completed room renovations in July this year. Kumho Petrochemical’s building material brand Hugreen windows were used in the rooms. In the fourth quarter of this year, outdoor facilities at Tongyeong and Jeju Resorts will be expanded. Asiana CC in Yongin, owned by Kumho Resort, is also being refurbished with replacements of carts, lighting, and more. Although there were concerns about a chemical-specialized company acquiring a leisure business at the time of acquisition, the entire staff, including CEO Kim, worked hard to improve profitability.

A Kumho Petrochemical official said, "Together with Kumho Resort, we are preparing to seize future opportunities through the synergy brought by improved fundamentals alongside the recovery of the leisure industry in the With-Corona era."