Lee Kun-hee facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Lee Kun-hee
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| 이건희 | |
King Lee Kun-Hee attending breakfast with various Korean business leaders in 2013
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| Born | 9 January 1942 |
| Died | 25 October 2020 (aged 78) Seoul, South Korea
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| Alma mater | Waseda University (BS) George Washington University (MBA) |
| Title | Chairman of Samsung |
| Spouse(s) | Hong Ra-hee |
| Children | Lee Jae-yong Lee Boo-jin Lee Seo-hyun Lee Yoon-hyung |
| Parent(s) | Lee Byung-chul (1910–1987) Park Du-eul (1907–2000) |
| Relatives | Lee Myung-hee (sister) |
| Korean name | |
| Hangul | |
| Hanja | |
| Revised Romanization | I Geonhui |
| McCune–Reischauer | Yi Kŏnhŭi |
Lee Kun-hee (Hangul: 이건희; Hanja: 李健熙) was a very important South Korean businessman. He was the chairman of the Samsung Group for many years, from 1987 to 2008, and then again from 2010 until he passed away in 2020.
He is famous for helping Samsung become one of the biggest companies in the world. Samsung now makes many things like smartphones, televisions, and computer chips. When Lee Kun-hee was in charge, Samsung grew to be the world's top maker of smartphones, memory chips, and home appliances. He was the third son of Lee Byung-chul, who started Samsung. At the time of his death, Lee Kun-hee was the richest person in South Korea. He had held this position since 2007. He faced some legal challenges during his career but was later pardoned.
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Early Life and Education
Lee Kun-hee was born on January 9, 1942, in Daegu, which was part of Korea under Japanese rule at the time. His father, Lee Byung-chul, founded the Samsung group. Samsung started as a company that exported fruits and dried fish.
Lee Kun-hee studied economics at Waseda University in Japan. He also went to George Washington University in Washington, D.C. to study business, but he did not finish that degree.
Leading Samsung
First Time as Chairman
Lee Kun-hee started working at the Samsung Group in 1966. He first worked for a broadcasting company and later for Samsung's construction and trading businesses.
He became the chairman of Samsung on December 24, 1987, after his father passed away. In 1993, Lee Kun-hee believed that Samsung was making too many products that were not high quality. He wanted the company to focus on making better products to compete with other big companies like Sony. He famously said, "Change everything except your wife and kids." This meant he wanted big changes in how Samsung worked.
In 1993, he gathered Samsung's leaders in Frankfurt, Germany. This meeting is known as the 'Frankfurt Declaration'. He told them to focus on quality, even if it meant selling fewer products at first. Because of this focus, Samsung became the biggest maker of televisions in 2006, selling more than Sony.
Return to Leadership
On March 24, 2010, Lee Kun-hee announced he was returning to lead Samsung Electronics as its chairman. He stayed in this role until 2014. In 2014, he had a heart attack and became very ill. His son, Lee Jae-yong, then became the main leader of the Samsung group.
Lee Kun-hee is known for making Samsung the world's largest maker of smartphones, televisions, and memory chips. When he passed away, Samsung was worth about US$300 billion. He was the richest person in South Korea, a position he had held since 2007. After his death, his family faced a very large inheritance tax bill, which is a tax on money and property inherited from someone who has died.
Family Life
Lee Kun-hee was married to Hong Ra-hee. Her father was also a well-known businessman.
Many of Lee Kun-hee's family members also work in important roles at big Korean companies. For example, his oldest daughter, Lee Boo-jin, is the president and CEO of Hotel Shilla, a fancy hotel chain. She also leads Everland Resort, a popular theme park.
Health and Passing
Lee Kun-hee had lung cancer treatment in the late 1990s. He was hospitalized in Seoul in May 2014 after having a heart attack. He remained in a coma until he passed away on October 25, 2020, at 78 years old. His death led to the largest inheritance tax bill in South Korean history.
After His Death
In 2021, Lee Kun-hee's family announced that his huge art collection would be given to public museums in South Korea. This collection included more than 23,000 pieces of art. The country's minister of culture also shared plans to build a new museum just for the Lee collection.
See also
In Spanish: Lee Kun-hee para niños
