Paik Jong-won Says "Last Year Was a Lost Year... All Allegations Cleared"

According to The Financial News, Paik Jong-won stated at the regular shareholders' meeting that most of the various allegations raised last year had been concluded with no charges, and he announced that the company would once again move aggressively to expand its overseas business and pursue mergers and acquisitions (M&A).
In his greeting at the shareholders' meeting on the 31st, Paik said, "Last year, I spent a lost year of my life dealing with numerous cyberattacks and a flood of unreasonable complaints and accusations from certain groups," adding, "Now that almost all of those allegations have resulted in no charges, we are only just beginning the business activities we were unable to carry out last year."
He went on to say that last year’s events prompted a sweeping review of the company’s internal management system. Paik explained, "Through a full-scale organizational overhaul, we created a public relations team to strengthen responsible external communication, and we completed a review by establishing dedicated risk management units such as the audit team, quality and safety management team, and information security team," stressing, "Above all, I am personally taking charge of operations in the field and practicing responsible management."
Regarding the agenda item on appointing new outside directors discussed at the meeting, Paik explained, "The goal is to build a transparent and sustainable system of responsible management by receiving frank criticism and support from external experts whose perspectives are closely tied to our business."
He identified overseas market expansion as a key strategic direction going forward. "We will focus on targeting overseas markets for global expansion," he said, emphasizing that the company is actively engaging with local partners in the Americas, Southeast Asia, and Europe.
Paik also reiterated his plans to push ahead with M&A. He said, "We will pursue aggressive M&A based on careful reviews that take business synergies into account," noting, "From the time of our listing, we had declared that we would actively pursue M&A, but over the past year, various external slander and attacks forced us to put those plans on hold."
He further announced plans to reinvigorate franchise outlets and expand new business lines. The company is currently promoting new ventures such as a Business-to-Business (B2B) kitchen solutions platform, a food service business, and diversification of distribution products, while also continuing brand renewals and strengthening both online and offline marketing, he emphasized.
hsg@fnnews.com Han Seung-gon Reporter