Jung Yong-jin Promoted to Chairman of Shinsegae Group on the 8th
Stops Enjoyed Instagram Activity, Drawing Attention
Recently, Jung Yong-jin, chairman of Shinsegae Group who has taken the helm of management, has attracted attention by stopping his usual communication on social networking services (SNS). As of the 28th, all posts on Chairman Jung's Instagram account have disappeared, displaying the message "No posts." This account, which has 840,000 followers, has not had any new posts for about a month.
Chairman Jung has actively communicated with the public by posting various writings on his SNS accounts. Uniquely among business leaders, he gained popularity by expressing his thoughts candidly and earned the nickname "Yongjin hyung." However, in January 2022, ahead of the presidential election, his political remarks such as "Myeolgong" (anti-communism) and "I hate the Communist Party" sparked controversy, with concerns raised that these could pose risks to corporate management.
At that time, the labor union of E-Mart, a subsidiary of Shinsegae Group, issued a statement saying, "Businessman Yongjin hyung may support anti-communism, but he should first look at his own business," and public opinion was unfavorable. In response, Chairman Jung apologized, saying, "If even one colleague or customer turns away because of me, then nothing holds legitimacy. If anyone was hurt by my freedom, it is entirely my shortcoming."
Nevertheless, Chairman Jung continued to be active on emerging SNS platforms such as Clubhouse and Threads, maintaining his status as a "business influencer." As the owner of the professional baseball team SSG Landers, he gained attention from a marketing perspective by posting photos of himself eating "sold-out items" that sparked a craze in the distribution industry, such as "Meoktaekang" (dried pollack snacks) and "Asahi Super Dry draft beer," while watching the team's games.
Attention is now focused on Chairman Jung as he suddenly removed all posts from Instagram after concentrating on activities there for a while. His recent promotion is cited as a background for the SNS hiatus. On the 8th, he was promoted from vice chairman to chairman of Shinsegae Group for the first time in 18 years. Shinsegae Group stated, "This decision was made to boldly confront the rapidly changing distribution environment centered on the new chairman Jung Yong-jin," and added, "Personnel changes were made to establish an innovative system that will achieve sustainable growth."
In particular, starting from the 25th, E-Mart, a major affiliate, began accepting voluntary retirement applications from all employees with more than 15 years of service and at the manager level or above for the first time since its founding. As E-Mart posted losses last year, losing its top industry position to Coupang, and the group’s sales declined, the business environment has worsened, leading to evaluations that Chairman Jung is bearing the burden of innovating the management structure. There is also an interpretation that by organizing his SNS activities, he intends to immerse himself in considerations for the group’s growth.
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