Jung Yoo-kyung Promoted to Chairman of Shinsegae... Official Announcement of Sibling-led Affiliate Separation (Comprehensive)

Shinsegae Executes 2024 Regular Personnel Changes
Chairman Chung Yong-jin Promoted, Followed by Sibling Chairman
Chung Yoo-kyung Leads Department Store Division

Jung Yoo-kyung, the General President of Shinsegae Group, was promoted to Chairman of Shinsegae Co., Ltd. on the 30th. This marks the formal separation of the Emart and Shinsegae affiliates, as the eldest daughter, Chairman Jung, was promoted just nine months after the promotion of Jung Yong-jin, the eldest son of Lee Myung-hee, General Chairman of Shinsegae, in March.

Shinsegae Group announced through the 2025 regular executive personnel appointment on the same day that General President Jung Yoo-kyung would be promoted to Chairman of Shinsegae. Chairman Jung Yoo-kyung was promoted to General President of Shinsegae in December 2015, and after nine years, she will now lead the department store division.

Shinsegae Officially Announces Separation of Department Store and Emart Affiliates

Shinsegae Group stated, "The promotion of General President Jung Yoo-kyung to Chairman is to strengthen responsible management and lay the foundation for affiliate separation." They added, "This means separating the group into two pillars: the department store division and the Emart division, aiming for new growth. Starting with this personnel appointment, we plan to pool our capabilities to ensure smooth affiliate separation in the future."

Shinsegae Group, which became independent from Samsung Group in 1997, has been led by Lee Myung-hee, the youngest daughter of the late Lee Byung-chul, founder of Samsung Group. In 2011, General Chairman Lee split Emart and the department store into two companies, entrusting Emart to Chairman Jung Yong-jin and the department store business to Chairman Jung Yoo-kyung, initiating 'sibling management.'

In 2019, Shinsegae and Emart each established new holding companies for the department store and Emart divisions, respectively, beginning preparations for affiliate separation. Through this, the department store division expanded into department stores, fashion & beauty, duty-free, and outlet businesses, while Emart focused on hypermarkets as the core, along with Starfield, Starbucks, convenience stores, and supermarkets.

As of last year, Shinsegae Group's sales exceeded 71 trillion won, growing into the largest distribution company in Korea. In the department store sector, the Gangnam branch surpassed 3 trillion won in sales last year, overtaking Lotte Department Store, which had been the top in sales scale in the domestic department store industry. Although Emart struggled due to the downturn in the hypermarket sector, Starfield and Starbucks settled in well, showing continuous growth.

Shinsegae Group stated, "This year is an appropriate time to start the affiliate separation that has been quietly prepared, as a successful turnaround is becoming visible in terms of strengthening profitability through recovery of core business competitiveness."

(Left) Chung Yong-jin, Vice Chairman of Shinsegae Group, Chung Yoo-kyung, President of Shinsegae Group

Chairman Lee Myung-hee Left with Only 10% Stake Succession

Currently, Shinsegae Group is linked by General Chairman Lee Myung-hee holding 10% stakes each in Shinsegae and Emart, connecting the two holding companies. Chairman Jung Yong-jin and Chairman Jung Yoo-kyung each hold 18.56% stakes in Emart and Shinsegae, respectively. With Chairman Jung Yoo-kyung's promotion formalizing the separation of Emart and the department store affiliates, it is highly likely that General Chairman Lee Myung-hee's shares will be passed on to the siblings.

Shinsegae Group explained that this personnel appointment is significant as it is the first personnel move in Chairman Jung Yong-jin's first year in office. In particular, it reflects the group's intention to actively select talent based on capabilities under the principle of meritocracy, where "rewards are given where there is performance."

First, Han Chae-yang, Vice President and CEO of Emart, will be promoted to President. Since the personnel reshuffle last September, President Han has been leading the three distribution companies?Emart, Emart Everyday, and Emart24?focusing all efforts on strengthening core business competitiveness.

Song Man-jun, Head of Emart PL and Global Business Division, has been appointed as CEO of Emart24. This is a strategic move to strengthen the 'No Brand-centered convenience store model' introduced this year. Kang Seung-hyeop, Head of Shinsegae Property Support Headquarters, was appointed CEO of Shinsegae Food, which continues innovation through recent business adjustments.

Kim Hong-geuk, CEO of Shinsegae Casa, will concurrently serve as CEO of Shinsegae International's Beauty & Life Division. Jeon Sang-jin, Head of Emart Support Headquarters, has been appointed CEO of Chosun Hotel & Resort, and Magi Hwan was recruited externally as CEO of Shinsegae L&B.

Kim Jae-seop, in charge of planning and management at Emart, was selected as CEO of the Shinsegae baseball team. The group explained that this means that talented individuals can be appointed as CEOs regardless of rank to enable performance creation.