Member Companies Headline

Lotte Hotel Seoul Reopens as THE GRAND LOTTE SEOUL

Lotte Hotel Seoul has officially reopened as THE GRAND LOTTE SEOUL, a classic luxury hotel that carries forward nearly 50 years of heritage. When it opened in 1979 as a 38-story landmark, the tallest building in Korea at the time, Lotte Hotel Seoul welcomed guests from Korea and around the world, including heads of state and other prominent figures, establishing itself as one of Seoul’s iconic hotels. Building on this history and its service expertise, THE GRAND LOTTE SEOUL expresses its new brand philosophy as “An Icon of Timeless Elegance.”
The hotel has also significantly upgraded its rooms and services as it begins its new chapter. Over approximately 15 months beginning in May 2025, floors 7 through 21 of the Main Tower were renovated, reducing the number of rooms from 737 to 590 while increasing the average room size. The room interiors were designed by French interior designer Pierre-Yves Rochon, known for projects including Four Seasons Hotel George V, Paris, combining the refinement of French luxury with Korean aesthetics.
The brand philosophy extends to every customer touchpoint. Artwork by Korean and international artists, including the late Seo-bo Park, has been incorporated throughout the hotel. The hotel has also developed a signature fragrance inspired by Lotte Group’s Ghana Chocolate. Uniforms that reinterpret the lines and structure of traditional Korean attire and floral arrangements featuring the brand’s colors complete the experience. By combining Lotte Hotel’s signature attention to hospitality with classic luxury and Korean aesthetics, the hotel aims to offer a distinctive stay.

2026 SAMYANG CONNECT Held

Samyang Group held 2026 SAMYANG CONNECT at the Samyang Discovery Center in Pangyo to share its first-half business performance and second-half strategy. Held once each in the first and second halves of the year, SAMYANG CONNECT is an internal event at which Chairman Yoon Kim personally shares business updates and strategies with employees and strengthens communication.
Chairman Kim said that improved spreads for major chemical products drove the group’s first-half performance, while profitability also improved in specialty materials such as semiconductor materials and ion-exchange resins. He highlighted the acquisition of Japanese fragrance company Soda Aromatic, stronger first-half performance at Samyang NC Chem, and the launch of the group’s proprietary AI platform, “SAMI 2.0,” as key achievements in global expansion, specialty businesses, and AX.
In the second half, the group plans to accelerate efforts to improve productivity through AX and shift its business portfolio toward specialty businesses in response to geopolitical risks, supply chain uncertainty, economic polarization, and a widening AI divide among companies. Chairman Kim reiterated three management priorities: “upgrading the business portfolio with a focus on global and specialty businesses,” “cash flow-focused management,” and “embedding AI transformation,” while calling on employees to take action and contribute ideas as the group seeks to become a global specialty company.
The event also featured sessions designed to strengthen communication among employees, including a review of Samyang’s proprietary AI platform and recognition of employees selected as “Praise Champions.” It was livestreamed for employees at overseas and regional sites who were unable to attend in person.

LINA Life Insurance Strengthens Customer-Centric Management Initiatives

LINA Life Insurance is strengthening employee-participation initiatives centered on customer-centric management to promote a corporate culture focused on consumer protection. Beginning this year, the company revamped its program so that employees can directly experience the insurance enrollment and claims processes from the customer’s perspective and identify areas for improvement.
Key activities include the “Customer Perspective Check,” in which employees experience the insurance application and claims processes; “Listening to the Customer,” in which they listen to recordings of actual customer complaints and identify potential improvements; and the “Employee Observer Program,” in which employees participate as observers in consumer protection councils. Other activities include financial education for young people and initiatives to improve internal systems. All employees are required to participate in at least one activity, and the results are reflected in performance evaluations.
In April, these efforts were recognized by the Financial Supervisory Service as an outstanding example of incorporating consumer protection into performance-based compensation systems, during its review of the implementation of best practices in financial consumer protection governance. LINA Life Insurance plans to continue building a consumer protection culture that goes beyond formal participation and delivers tangible improvements to the customer experience.

Hyundai Department Store Partners with KOCCA to Expand Overseas Opportunities for K-Fashion

Hyundai Department Store is partnering with the Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA) to support Korean fashion brands seeking to enter overseas markets. The two organizations signed an MOU to promote the overseas expansion and shared growth of designer fashion brands. They will also collaborate to identify promising K-fashion brands and open pop-up stores and feature them at major overseas locations.
Hyundai Department Store will support brands’ overseas expansion by leveraging its international retail network and expertise in local store operations, while KOCCA will provide support for product transportation, export costs, and promotion. The first pop-up store will open at The Hyundai’s permanent store inside PARCO Shibuya in Tokyo. Five brands will be featured in sequence, beginning with footwear brand YASE on September 25, then followed by VERSO, s/e/o, RE RHEE, and NOHANT.
Since 2024, Hyundai Department Store has operated “The Hyundai Global,” a K-content export platform that has expanded opportunities for Korean brands overseas, primarily in Japan. The company plans to launch K-fashion pop-up stores not only in Japan but also in European cities such as Paris, while expanding its global retail network to Taiwan, Hong Kong, and other markets.

Toray Advanced Materials Korea Develops Highly Flexible PET Interior Film

Toray Advanced Materials Korea has developed a high-performance PET interior film that overcomes the flexibility limitations of conventional PET materials. PET is used for interior surface finishes because of its excellent processability and appearance, but its inherent rigidity has limited its application to complex shapes. The company has developed highly flexible PET interior film to address this limitation.
Using proprietary film processing and manufacturing technologies and high-performance elastomeric materials, Toray Advanced Materials Korea achieved approximately twice the flexibility of conventional PVC materials. This allows the film to be applied securely to curved surfaces and right-angle edges without lifting, expanding its potential use across a range of interior designs. The company plans to expand its product lineup into next-generation high-performance interior materials, including flame-retardant PET films.
Amid tightening environmental regulations and growing demand for alternatives to PVC, the development is expected to further strengthen Toray Advanced Materials Korea’s competitiveness in the next-generation interior finishing materials market.

Samyang Foods and Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism Link Buldak Craze to Tourism in Korea

Samyang Foods and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism have signed an MOU to attract more international visitors to Korea and promote Korean tourism. The initiative aims to turn the global popularity of K-food into actual demand for travel to Korea, using Samyang Foods’ Buldak Spicy Ramen, which has developed a global following, as a key vehicle. The partners plan to combine the brand power of Buldak - which has helped promote an image of Korea as passionate and adventurous through its signature spiciness - with Samyang Foods’ overseas marketing capabilities and the government’s tourism content to create a tourism promotion model integrated into everyday consumer experiences.
Online and offline promotions linking Buldak noodles and sauce products with tourism information will be conducted through overseas distribution channels. At the “2026 Korean Culture and Tourism Festival Love Korea” in Bangkok, Thailand, the partners will offer programs combining Buldak tastings with Korean cultural experiences. Joint campaigns through the two organizations’ official online channels will also promote a range of Korean tourism content.

Hanmi Semiconductor Showcases AI Semiconductor Packaging Equipment

Hanmi Semiconductor participated in “SEMICON Taiwan 2026,” held in Taipei from September 2 to 4, where it showcased advanced packaging equipment, including 2.5D packaging equipment for AI system semiconductors and TC bonders for HBM. Hanmi Semiconductor has participated as an official sponsor of SEMICON Taiwan for 12 consecutive years, from 2015 through this year.
At the exhibition, the company unveiled five types of 2.5D packaging equipment, including the “FC Bonder 3.5,” “FC Bonder 75,” “2.5D TC Bonder 40 C2S·C2W,” and “2.5D TC Bonder 120.” 2.5D packaging is a technology that integrates multiple chips, including GPUs, CPUs, and HBM, into a single package, with demand growing rapidly for its use in AI semiconductors and high-performance computing. Some of the equipment is already being used for mass production by global foundries and backend semiconductor companies, while Hanmi Semiconductor is strengthening its ability to serve the market with equipment capable of supporting silicon interposers and substrates of various sizes.
The company also introduced the “TC Bonder 4.0” for HBM4 production and a “Wide TC Bonder” for next-generation HBM. As global memory companies begin full-scale HBM4 production this year, the supply of related equipment is also expanding. Building on its competitiveness in the HBM TC bonder market, Hanmi Semiconductor is expanding into advanced packaging equipment for AI system semiconductors and strengthening its position in the global AI semiconductor market.