Paradise Records KRW 136.1 Billion in Annual Operating Profit, Down 6.7%
First-Ever Annual Sales Surpass KRW 1 Trillion
GKL Posts KRW 38.3 Billion in Annual Operating Profit
Paradise surpassed KRW 1 trillion in annual sales for the first time since its founding last year, driven by stable growth in the Japanese market and a gradual recovery in the Chinese market. However, profitability declined somewhat due to increased marketing expenses.
On February 12, Paradise announced in a regulatory filing that its consolidated operating profit for last year was provisionally estimated at KRW 136.1 billion, down 6.7% from the previous year. Sales reached KRW 1.0721 trillion, an increase of 7.8%. This surpassed the previous record of KRW 994.2 billion in 2023, marking the first time the company has achieved annual sales in the KRW 1 trillion range. In the fourth quarter of last year, operating profit was KRW 19.5 billion, up 32.1% year-on-year. Sales for the same period also rose 9.9% to KRW 265.8 billion.
A Paradise spokesperson stated, "The improved profitability in our core casino business and integrated resort, along with effective cost-efficiency strategies, drove overall sales growth." However, they added, "Operating profit saw a slight decrease year-on-year due to increased costs associated with strengthened VIP marketing."
By segment, the combined sales of Paradise’s four casinos (Seoul Walkerhill, Busan, Jeju Grand, and Incheon Paradise City) rose 10.1% year-on-year to KRW 818.8 billion. The drop amount from Japanese VIP customers and mass (general) customers was KRW 2.8977 trillion and KRW 1.4452 trillion, respectively. The resort segment posted sales of KRW 248.8 billion, up 2.3% from the previous year, thanks to recovering tourism demand and an increase in foreign tourists visiting Korea.
Paradise Sega Sammy, which operates Paradise City, maintained strong growth momentum in the Japanese market through strategic collaboration with Sega Sammy Holdings, achieving sales of KRW 539.3 billion and operating profit of KRW 74.7 billion. These figures represent increases of 20% and 33%, respectively, over the previous year, marking the highest results since the opening of Paradise City.
Paradise plans to continue its growth this year by expanding differentiated premium services, such as dinner shows for Japanese and Chinese VIPs, localized marketing, and operating a casino VIP lounge at Gimpo International Airport. The company also aims to maximize Paradise City's customer attraction effect in line with the casino cluster development in Yeongjongdo, refine its overseas marketing, and actively secure a global customer base by reflecting foreign demand for K-culture.
A Paradise representative said, "This year, in addition to the steadily recovering Chinese market, we will intensify efforts to target new global markets such as Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Singapore, thereby broadening our VIP customer base."
Grand Korea Leisure (GKL), which operates the foreigner-only Seven Luck Casino, reported that its operating profit last year was KRW 38.3 billion, down 24.9% from the previous year. Sales edged down 0.1% to KRW 396.4 billion. In the fourth quarter, operating profit turned positive to KRW 5.5 billion, compared to an operating loss of KRW 940 million in the same period the previous year. Quarterly sales rose 16.7% to KRW 105.9 billion.
GKL explained that, as the casino industry conditions improved, the company strengthened its marketing efforts, which in turn led to higher related costs and a decrease in annual operating profit. According to GKL, selling and administrative expenses last year amounted to KRW 32.6 billion, up 12% year-on-year, while marketing expenses increased 15% to KRW 66.6 billion.
A GKL representative stated, "To attract overseas casino customers, we are actively dispatching employees to major Asian countries such as Japan, Taiwan, and Mongolia to engage VIP clients directly." The representative added, "For the Greater China market, we are maintaining non-face-to-face marketing activities targeting existing customers to support the recovery of VIP demand." They further noted, "We are also actively hosting customized events to prevent the departure of existing customers."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
