CJ Olive Young Reacquires Half of the Stake Sold to Private Equity Fund

Glenwood PE Acquires 11.3% Stake
Deal Expected to Close Next Month

CJ Olive Young is repurchasing half, or 11.3%, of the 22.6% stake it sold to the private equity firm Glenwood Private Equity (PE) in 2021.

According to the distribution industry on the 29th, CJ Olive Young and Glenwood PE recently agreed on the repurchase of an 11.3% stake and plan to complete the transaction next month. Although the repurchase price for the 11.3% stake has not been disclosed, it is estimated that Glenwood PE earned a profit of several hundred billion won based on the current corporate value.

CJ Olive Young operating in downtown Seoul. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

Glenwood PE acquired a 22.6% stake in Olive Young for 410 billion won in 2021. At that time, Olive Young's corporate value was estimated at 1.8 trillion won, but since then, sales and operating profits have surged, and the current value is estimated by the industry to be over 5 trillion won.

Olive Young's sales surpassed 2 trillion won in 2021, grew to 2.7775 trillion won in 2022, and reached 3.8612 trillion won last year. Last year's operating profit was 466 billion won, and net profit was 347.3 billion won.

The decision to repurchase Glenwood PE's stake in Olive Young has also drawn attention to the possibility of resuming the initial public offering (IPO), which was tentatively suspended in 2022. The listing of Olive Young is linked to the succession of the CJ Group ownership.

The largest shareholder of Olive Young is CJ, holding 51.15% of the shares. The second-largest shareholder is 'Korea H&B Holdings,' a special purpose vehicle of Glenwood PE, holding 22.6%. Lee Sun-ho, eldest son of CJ Chairman Lee Jae-hyun and management leader of CJ CheilJedang, holds 11.04%, and his daughter Lee Kyung-hoo, head of brand strategy at CJ ENM, holds 4.21%.