[비즈한국] It has been confirmed that Jung Woon-ho, former CEO of Nature Republic (currently CEO of SeGye Prime Development), resigned as CEO of Ssangbangwool in April of this year. SeGye Prime Development, where he serves as the largest shareholder, acquired Ssangbangwool in January of last year. Jung had shown great enthusiasm upon taking office as CEO of Ssangbangwool in February last year. However, Ssangbangwool's performance failed to improve, and as former affiliates acquired stakes in Ssangbangwool last year, SeGye Prime Development lost its status as the largest shareholder. This has created a structure in which Jung no longer wields significant influence over Ssangbangwool.
SeGye Prime Development became the largest shareholder in January last year after acquiring the entire 12.04% stake in Ssangbangwool previously held by Kwanglim014200. Subsequently, Jung Woon-ho took office as CEO of Ssangbangwool in February last year. At the time, Jung stated, "This is by no means an reckless acquisition."
However, as changes occurred in Ssangbangwool's governance structure at the end of last year, Jung Woon-ho's influence diminished. In November last year, during the liquidation trading process, Kwanglim acquired a 17.73% stake for 2.4 billion won, becoming the largest shareholder of Ssangbangwool. Liquidation trading is a system that allows trading for a certain period to give shareholders of stocks slated for delisting one final opportunity to cash out. Ssangbangwool was delisted last November due to embezzlement and breach of trust allegations involving former chairman Kim Sung-tae.
Kwanglim was a former Ssangbangwool affiliate. Until 2024, the Ssangbangwool Group's governance structure followed a circular shareholding pattern of 'Ssangbangwool → Vivian002070 → Dimoa016360 → NSENM → Jayjun Cosmetic025620 → Kwanglim → Ssangbangwool.' For Kwanglim, this meant selling a 12.04% stake in Ssangbangwool for 7 billion won in the past and buying back a 17.73% stake for 2.4 billion won. Additionally, Arumdauri Corporation acquired a 9.71% stake in Ssangbangwool during the liquidation trading process, and Dimoa, another former Ssangbangwool affiliate, purchased an 11.05% stake last December. Arumdauri Corporation is a company where Won Sung-jun, the eldest son of Ocean in the W chairman Won Young-sik, is the largest shareholder.
As a result, Ssangbangwool's shareholder composition has been reorganized into: △Kwanglim 17.73% △SeGye Prime Development 12.04% △Dimoa 11.05% △Arumdauri Corporation 9.71%. This structure makes it difficult for Jung Woon-ho or SeGye Prime Development to exert significant influence at Ssangbangwool.
Analysts suggest that this shareholder structure also influenced Jung Woon-ho's departure from the CEO position. In March of this year, a month before Jung stepped down, Ssangbangwool appointed former Ssangbangwool CEO Lee Hyung-seok as a new internal director. Lee had taken office as CEO of Ssangbangwool in November 2023 but stepped down after the company was acquired by SeGye Prime Development. He is considered a figure from the previous management team of the Ssangbangwool Group.
Yoon Eui-sik, former Vice President of Vivian, was appointed as Jung's successor. The new CEO, Yoon Eui-sik, served as a director at Vivian from March 2022 to February 2025. As Vivian was a former Ssangbangwool affiliate, the new CEO Yoon also has deep ties to the former management of the Ssangbangwool Group. However, as Yoon continued to serve as a director at Ssangbangwool even after its acquisition by SeGye Prime Development, he appears to have maintained a relationship with Jung Woon-ho as well.
Apart from Jung Woon-ho's resignation, Ssangbangwool's recent performance has been sluggish. Revenue fell 14.46% from 18.6 billion won in the first quarter of last year to 15.9 billion won in the first quarter of this year. Profitability is also poor, with an operating loss of 1.2 billion won recorded in the first quarter of this year. Many evaluate that Ssangbangwool's presence has diminished significantly since the 2000s, as numerous foreign clothing brands have entered the domestic market.
BizHankook attempted to contact Ssangbangwool via telephone to hear their position on the matter, but could not be reached.