[The faces inside KOREA’S CONGLOMERATES]
After focusing mainly on the domestic market for years, the Booyoung Group slowly branched out into the Southeast Asia region in 1993.
After focusing mainly on the domestic market for years, the Booyoung Group slowly branched out into the Southeast Asia region in 1993.
March 08, 2010
 | |
Joong Ang Daily
Korea
The Booyoung Group is not a household corporate name like Hyundai or Samsung, and its main business - construction - isn’t as sexy as cars or consumer electronics.
But the conglomerate is making a name for itself with the public and in educational circles not only in Korea but also in Cambodia and other countries in Southeast Asia where it does business.
Late last month, the Booyoung Group donated 3,000 musical keyboards to the Cambodian government, which then distributed them to elementary schools throughout the country.
Lee Joong-keun, the founder and chairman of the Booyoung Group, said during a donation ceremony held in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh that the keyboards will improve music education in the country and play an active role in strengthening cultural exchange and the overall relationship between the two nations. Aside from Cambodia, the Booyoung Group previously donated 10,000 musical keyboards in Vietnam and 2,000 in Laos, enhancing its corporate brand in the region.
The conglomerate also provides donations and other support to the education world in Korea, helping build dormitories, libraries, lecture halls and gymnasiums for schools across the country.
Lee Joong-keun, left, attends a ceremony in Vietnam in January to mark the Booyoung Group’s donation of 10,000 musical keyboards to elementary students in the country. [JoongAng Ilbo]
This spirit of community involvement and social responsibility trickles down from the top and is present in the Booyoung Group’s main business operations - building apartments for low-income families as part of government-led initiatives - as well.
“Even before establishing the Booyoung Group, the chairman had a lot of interest contributing to building the nation’s education system,” said a public relations official at Booyoung, who requested anonymity.
Lee is viewed as an unorthodox executive in the construction industry. Under his leadership, the conglomerate has taken on a segment of the market that most builders avoid. Many construction firms pursue projects that have higher profit margins, less government interference and fewer regulations.
Lee, however, considers building low-income apartments as a niche market with huge potential. It also isn’t as competitive as the private market and is sheltered somewhat from economic shifts. At the same time, Lee see it as a way for the company to fulfill its social responsibility.
Between 1998 and 2002 - the period after the Asian financial crisis, which battered the Korean economy and led to the closure of numerous construction firms - Booyoung became one the nation’s top builders in terms of volume. The past few years haven’t been as kind, in part because the construction industry in Korea took a hit during the global economic meltdown. At the same time, the segment of the market Booyoung focuses on has eroded a bit.
“The overall construction industry is in a dire situation mostly because of the worldwide economic downturn,” said Lee Chang-keun, a senior analyst at Hyundai Securities. “Even Booyoung, which is in an area of the industry that is typically more stable, won’t see any positive changes until after the local elections in June.”
Booyoung has survived through numerous ups and downs since it was founded in 1983, in part because of the veteran leadership of its founder and chairman.
Lee Joong-keun, who has worked in the industry since the 1970s, employs a slow and steady approach to expansion. Unlike other conglomerates that spread their businesses in every direction, Booyoung has mainly stuck to its core business of apartment construction. After focusing mainly on the domestic market for years, it slowly branched out into Southeast Asia in 1993.
Booyoung Group currently has six affiliates, most of which are in the construction business: Dongkwang, Gwangyoung Construction, Namkwang Construction, Namyang Development, Booyoung Country Club and Booyoung Finance.
Dongkwang builds smaller housing units and handles real-estate leases. It also manages the sports center Aesiang in Mok-dong, southwestern Seoul, which opened in 2000.
Gwangyoung’s main business is selling apartments that are built by a client company, although it does its own engineering and smaller construction work as well. Namkwang Construction Industrial is Booyoung’s construction operation on Jeju Island, which is also the location of the Booyoung Country Club. Namkwang Development is another affiliate of Booyoung that operates on Jeju and specializes in building leisure related facilities.
Several executives are key to these operations.
Kim Eui-ki, a president at Booyoung Group, oversees the conglomerate itself as well as the Dongkwang affiliate, while Kim Seung-ki, another president, heads the group’s overseas operations and manges Gwangyoung Construction.
Chung Hoon, former president of Booyoung and now an adviser to the construction conglomerate, manages Booyoung’s golf club in Jeju.
Yang Pal-jin, a president of Booyoung, is in charge of Namkwang Construction and Namkwang Development. Booyoung Finance doesn’t have a chief executive at the moment.
The presidents have diverse backgrounds. Kim Eui-ki, for instance, previously was a diplomat who was stationed in Romania as an ambassador in 2001 and in Vietnam in 2005 before moving back to Korea and joining Booyoung. Kim is also the first chairman of the Rental Housing Association, which launched in 2008.
Kim Seung-ki is an expert in finance and worked at various securities and investment firms, including Shinhan Securities.
By Lee Ho-jeong [ojlee82@joongang.co.kr]
Korea
The Booyoung Group is not a household corporate name like Hyundai or Samsung, and its main business - construction - isn’t as sexy as cars or consumer electronics.
But the conglomerate is making a name for itself with the public and in educational circles not only in Korea but also in Cambodia and other countries in Southeast Asia where it does business.
Late last month, the Booyoung Group donated 3,000 musical keyboards to the Cambodian government, which then distributed them to elementary schools throughout the country.
Lee Joong-keun, the founder and chairman of the Booyoung Group, said during a donation ceremony held in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh that the keyboards will improve music education in the country and play an active role in strengthening cultural exchange and the overall relationship between the two nations. Aside from Cambodia, the Booyoung Group previously donated 10,000 musical keyboards in Vietnam and 2,000 in Laos, enhancing its corporate brand in the region.
The conglomerate also provides donations and other support to the education world in Korea, helping build dormitories, libraries, lecture halls and gymnasiums for schools across the country.
Lee Joong-keun, left, attends a ceremony in Vietnam in January to mark the Booyoung Group’s donation of 10,000 musical keyboards to elementary students in the country. [JoongAng Ilbo]
This spirit of community involvement and social responsibility trickles down from the top and is present in the Booyoung Group’s main business operations - building apartments for low-income families as part of government-led initiatives - as well.
“Even before establishing the Booyoung Group, the chairman had a lot of interest contributing to building the nation’s education system,” said a public relations official at Booyoung, who requested anonymity.
Lee is viewed as an unorthodox executive in the construction industry. Under his leadership, the conglomerate has taken on a segment of the market that most builders avoid. Many construction firms pursue projects that have higher profit margins, less government interference and fewer regulations.
Lee, however, considers building low-income apartments as a niche market with huge potential. It also isn’t as competitive as the private market and is sheltered somewhat from economic shifts. At the same time, Lee see it as a way for the company to fulfill its social responsibility.
Between 1998 and 2002 - the period after the Asian financial crisis, which battered the Korean economy and led to the closure of numerous construction firms - Booyoung became one the nation’s top builders in terms of volume. The past few years haven’t been as kind, in part because the construction industry in Korea took a hit during the global economic meltdown. At the same time, the segment of the market Booyoung focuses on has eroded a bit.
“The overall construction industry is in a dire situation mostly because of the worldwide economic downturn,” said Lee Chang-keun, a senior analyst at Hyundai Securities. “Even Booyoung, which is in an area of the industry that is typically more stable, won’t see any positive changes until after the local elections in June.”
Booyoung has survived through numerous ups and downs since it was founded in 1983, in part because of the veteran leadership of its founder and chairman.
Lee Joong-keun, who has worked in the industry since the 1970s, employs a slow and steady approach to expansion. Unlike other conglomerates that spread their businesses in every direction, Booyoung has mainly stuck to its core business of apartment construction. After focusing mainly on the domestic market for years, it slowly branched out into Southeast Asia in 1993.
Booyoung Group currently has six affiliates, most of which are in the construction business: Dongkwang, Gwangyoung Construction, Namkwang Construction, Namyang Development, Booyoung Country Club and Booyoung Finance.
Dongkwang builds smaller housing units and handles real-estate leases. It also manages the sports center Aesiang in Mok-dong, southwestern Seoul, which opened in 2000.
Gwangyoung’s main business is selling apartments that are built by a client company, although it does its own engineering and smaller construction work as well. Namkwang Construction Industrial is Booyoung’s construction operation on Jeju Island, which is also the location of the Booyoung Country Club. Namkwang Development is another affiliate of Booyoung that operates on Jeju and specializes in building leisure related facilities.
Several executives are key to these operations.
Kim Eui-ki, a president at Booyoung Group, oversees the conglomerate itself as well as the Dongkwang affiliate, while Kim Seung-ki, another president, heads the group’s overseas operations and manges Gwangyoung Construction.
Chung Hoon, former president of Booyoung and now an adviser to the construction conglomerate, manages Booyoung’s golf club in Jeju.
Yang Pal-jin, a president of Booyoung, is in charge of Namkwang Construction and Namkwang Development. Booyoung Finance doesn’t have a chief executive at the moment.
The presidents have diverse backgrounds. Kim Eui-ki, for instance, previously was a diplomat who was stationed in Romania as an ambassador in 2001 and in Vietnam in 2005 before moving back to Korea and joining Booyoung. Kim is also the first chairman of the Rental Housing Association, which launched in 2008.
Kim Seung-ki is an expert in finance and worked at various securities and investment firms, including Shinhan Securities.
By Lee Ho-jeong [ojlee82@joongang.co.kr]
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