Core brands' global push highlighted at the shareholders’ meeting on March 24
Handsome, the fashion arm of Hyundai Department Store Group, says its top priority this year is restoring profitability through tighter cost control and structural improvements. The company plans to strengthen customer touchpoints by blending online and offline channels and to test new approaches like overseas expansion to drive future growth and lift shareholder value.
At the regular shareholders’ meeting at Handsome’s headquarters in Gangnam on the morning of March 24, CEO Kim Min-deok said, “We’ll use the System Paris flagship that opened last year and our standalone pop-ups in major Paris department stores to cement our global presence. We plan to expand our global collections through domestic flagships and key department-store channels and connect those efforts with our home-market business to deliver tangible results.”
Kim warned that a prolonged economic downturn, paired with domestic and international political uncertainty, is slowing the recovery of the local market. He noted that tougher conditions at home and abroad have pushed consumers toward value-driven shopping, making this another challenging year for the fashion sector. “To respond to shifting consumer trends and hit our mid- to long-term goals, we’ll prioritize restoring profitability and widening customer touchpoints,” he said.
He emphasized concrete steps to boost profitability. “In the short term, we’ll implement aggressive cost cuts and address inefficiencies to improve financial performance, while tightening inventory controls to speed up the recovery,” Kim said. “We’ll continue strengthening our value chain this year to do more than just recover results—we’ll build a sturdier foundation for long-term growth.”
Kim also pledged to combine Handsome’s online and offline strengths to make shopping more convenient and operations leaner. “We will improve management efficiency in the beauty business through the January 2025 merger with Handsome Life & and carry out a steady expansion strategy to build a solid platform for future growth,” he said.
The CEO also outlined plans to raise corporate value. “After last year’s buyback and cancellation of treasury shares, we canceled 50% of our remaining treasury shares in January,” Kim said. “To meet our mid- to long-term corporate value goals, we will faithfully execute shareholder-return policies and continue strengthening profitability in our existing businesses while securing new growth drivers.”
