Lotte, MOU for Cooperation to Host the 2030 World Expo in Busan

Preparation for On-site Inspection by BIE with the Bid Committee and Busan City
Promotional Activities for Busan Expo Bid in Busan and Seoul

Lotte World Tower panorama
[Photo by Lotte Holdings].

On the 8th, Lotte announced that it will sign a 'Cooperation MOU for the Attraction of the 2030 Busan World Expo' with the 2030 Busan World Expo Organizing Committee and Busan Metropolitan City. The signing ceremony was attended by Yoon Sang-jik, Secretary General of the Organizing Committee, Lee Seong-gwon, Deputy Mayor for Economic Affairs of Busan, and Lee Gap, Head of Communications at Lotte Holdings.

Lotte will utilize its infrastructure to support the preparation for the on-site inspection by the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE), which will take place from April 3 to 7. To draw public interest and support for the Busan Expo bid, various promotional activities will be conducted in Busan and Seoul.

During the stay of the BIE on-site inspection team in Busan, Lotte will provide accommodations at Signiel Busan. Signiel Busan is a luxury hotel with 260 rooms located in the LCT Tower, a landmark in Haeundae, expected to showcase South Korea's advanced infrastructure. It offers views of Busan’s representative tourist spots such as Haeundae and Gwangandaegyo Bridge, and has excellent accessibility to various attractions including Mipo Port, Dalmaji Hill, and Dongbaek Island.

At Signiel Busan, Lotte Department Store, and over 700 Lotte affiliate business sites in the Busan area, banners reading 'BUSAN IS READY!' will be displayed alongside the Busan Expo emblem. This signifies that Busan is fully prepared to host the World Expo. Additionally, about 10,000 Lotte employees working in Busan will wear Busan Expo badges to express their hopes for the Expo’s successful bid.

Lotte Home Shopping and Lotte World will also participate in the 'Seoul Gwanghwamun Busan Expo Attraction Event (tentative name)' held at Gwanghwamun Square in Seoul from March 27 to April 4, coinciding with the visit of the on-site inspection team. Large character sculptures of each company’s mascots, Bellygom and Roti & Lori, will be installed as photo zones to boost enthusiasm for the Busan Expo bid. On April 3, when the inspection team visits Gwanghwamun, there will be citizen photo sessions with the characters and a performance by Lotte World’s female band.

Yoon Sang-jik, Secretary General of the Organizing Committee, said, "The nationwide enthusiasm centered on the host city Busan is a strength unique to the 2030 Busan World Expo compared to competing countries. This inspection visit will be an opportunity to effectively demonstrate our determination to realize the Expo."

Meanwhile, Lotte has organized a company-wide 'Lotte Group Bid Support TFT' to consolidate group capabilities and support the Busan Expo bid. Chairman Shin Dong-bin is leveraging his global business network to support the bid. Last June, he introduced Busan’s capabilities as a candidate city at the Consumer Goods Forum (CGF) held in Dublin, Ireland, and in January this year at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, meeting political and business leaders from various countries. In September last year, he met with Phan Van Mai, Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee, at the groundbreaking ceremony of the Thu Thiem Eco Smart City in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, to request support for the Busan Expo bid.

Executives from affiliate companies are also conducting bid promotion activities targeting government and diplomatic officials from BIE member countries. In November last year, executives from Lotte Chemical met Puan Maharani, Speaker of the Indonesian House of Representatives; Lotte Hotel executives met Koichi Aiboshi, Japanese Ambassador to Korea; and Lotte Confectionery executives met Alan John Kyerematen, Ghana’s Minister of Industry, to request support for the Busan Expo bid. At the end of last year, executives from Lotte Chilsung Beverage met ambassadors from 10 ASEAN countries residing in Korea, including Thailand, Cambodia, and the Philippines, to promote the Busan Expo bid.

Six Lotte distribution companies (Home Shopping, Department Store, Mart, Duty-Free, Hi-Mart, and Korea Seven) held the 'Lotte-Korea Brand Expo' in Germany and the United States last September to support small and medium-sized enterprises in expanding overseas markets and to promote the significance and strengths of the Busan Expo bid.