Lotte Wellfood facts for kids
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Native name
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롯데웰푸드 주식회사
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Formerly
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Lotte Confectionery (1967–2023) |
| Public | |
| Traded as | KRX: 280360 |
| Industry | Food |
| Predecessors |
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| Founded |
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| Founder | Shin Kyuk-ho |
| Headquarters |
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South Korea
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Area served
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Worldwide |
| Parent | Lotte Corporation |
Lotte Wellfood Co., Ltd. (Hangul: 롯데웰푸드 주식회사) is a big food company from South Korea. It used to be called Lotte Confectionery. The company's main office is in Seoul, South Korea.
Lotte Wellfood started way back in 1967. Today, it's one of the largest chewing gum makers in the world! You can find their factories in many countries, including Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Belgium, India, Russia, Myanmar, and China. In 2022, Lotte Confectionery joined with Lotte Foods. Then, in 2023, the company changed its name to Lotte Wellfood.
Contents
The Story of Lotte Wellfood
How Lotte Started with Chewing Gum
The story of Lotte begins after World War II in Japan. A young man named Shin Kyuk-ho, who was from Korea, went to Tokyo to study in 1941. After finishing college, he stayed in Japan.
In 1946, Shin Kyuk-ho started his first business. He made soaps and cosmetics from leftover chemicals. This small company helped him earn enough money to start something new.
Just one year later, he decided to make chewing gum. American soldiers had brought chewing gum to Japan, and it quickly became very popular. In 1948, Shin Kyuk-ho started Lotte Co. with only ten employees.
Shin Kyuk-ho chose the name "Lotte" because he liked a character named Charlotte from a famous book. Lotte started making chewing gums like Orange Gum, Lotte Gum, and Baseball Gum. They used natural ingredients for their gum.
Growing with Cool Mint Gum and Chocolate
Lotte was one of the first companies in Japan to advertise on TV. They also sponsored their own baseball team and other fun events. In the mid-1950s, Lotte even made a special chewing gum for an Antarctic research team! This gum was later sold to everyone as Cool Mint Gum in 1956.
Cool Mint Gum had a penguin on its package. This penguin became a very famous company logo for many years. Lotte also sponsored a popular TV music show called "Lotte Music Album."
Shin Kyuk-ho soon started making other sweets like candies, cookies, and snack cakes. By the early 1960s, Lotte was a strong competitor to other big candy companies in Japan.
A major step for Lotte was entering the chocolate market. In 1964, they launched their first milk chocolate called Ghana. This chocolate was made in a Swiss style but tasted great for Japanese people. Lotte advertised Ghana chocolate a lot on TV, and it became very popular. By the end of the century, Lotte was the number one chocolate maker in Japan.
Expanding to South Korea
Even though Lotte was successful in Japan, Shin Kyuk-ho never forgot his Korean roots. Lotte had a small presence in Korea since 1958, making chewing gum and other sweets.
In 1965, Japan and Korea started working together more closely. This gave Lotte a chance to grow even more in Korea. So, in 1967, the company started a special branch just for South Korea called Lotte Confectionery Co.
At first, there were some challenges with the Korean government. But eventually, Shin Kyuk-ho agreed to make South Korea the main center for Lotte's growing businesses. Even so, the original Lotte Co. in Japan remained the biggest part of the candy business until the 1990s.
Lotte's Global Reach
Becoming an International Company
In the 1990s and 2000s, Lotte started looking to expand around the world. Their first international step outside of Korea was in the late 1970s. In 1978, Lotte opened a company in the United States. They had factories and sales offices there, selling chewing gums and cookies.
In the 1990s, Lotte focused on countries closer to home. They opened a company in Thailand in 1989, making and selling candies. In 1993, Lotte went to Indonesia. Then, in 1994, they started a joint company in China, building factories in Beijing. Lotte took full control of its Chinese operations in 2005.
The Philippines became part of Lotte's growth in 1995. A year later, they also started making and selling products in Vietnam.
New Products and Innovations
Lotte kept creating new and exciting products. In 1996, they launched Chocolate Zero, which they said was the world's first sugar-free chocolate. The next year, Lotte was the first in Japan to make chewing gum with xylitol. Xylitol is a sweetener that doesn't cause cavities, so Lotte could say their gum helped fight tooth decay.
Lotte continued to develop xylitol products, including a drink called Xylitol Family Bottle. In 2005, they launched Lotte Notime, a chewing gum that helps polish teeth.
In 2002, Lotte also expanded its frozen dessert business. They teamed up with another company to make ice cream products. In 2005, Lotte bought a food company in China, showing their goal to become a major candy company worldwide.
Shin Kyuk-ho, along with his family, continued to lead Lotte. In less than 60 years, he built Lotte from a small chewing gum maker into one of the world's top food groups.
On October 12, 2017, Lotte Confectionery became a separate company to help form Lotte Corporation, which became the main holding company.
How Lotte Wellfood is Owned
As of June 2024, here's how Lotte Wellfood is owned:
| Shareholder | Stake (%) | Flag |
|---|---|---|
| Lotte Corporation | 47.47% |  |
| Lotte Aluminium | 6.82% | |
| Lotte Scholarship Foundation | 5.26% | |
| Lotte Holdings | 4.41% |  |
| Shin Dong-bin | 1.93% | |
| Shin Young-ja | 1.49% | |
| L No. 2 Investment Company | 1.46% |  |
| Chang Jung-an | 0.14% | |
| Shin Yu-mi | 0.11% | |
| Treasury Stock | 6.29% | |
What Lotte Wellfood Makes
Lotte's products are sold all over the world, especially where Japanese and Korean people live, and in Asian supermarkets.
Sweet Treats and Snacks
Lotte makes many kinds of snacks, including gums, candies, cookies, and chocolates. Their Juicy Fresh, Spearmint, and Freshmint chewing gums have been popular for over 40 years. Ghana Chocolate is also a long-time favorite. Xylitol chewing gum is very popular because it helps reduce the risk of tooth decay.
Lotte Wellfood also makes the Crunky candy bar and the Chic-Choc cookie, which is a famous chocolate chip cookie in South Korea. They also bake other snacks like the Margaret cookie. Lotte is also well known for its cookies called Koala's March. These are small, cream-filled cookies shaped like koalas, sold in a cool hexagonal box. Another popular product is Pepero, which is similar to a Japanese snack called Pocky.
To reach more people in China, Lotte has worked with Hershey's. In 2008, Lotte also bought Guylian, a company from Belgium that makes delicious chocolates.
Cool Ice Cream Treats
Lotte Wellfood has a big share of the ice cream market in Korea. They offer many popular ice cream products like bars, cones, cups, and buckets.
Healthy Supplements
Lotte Wellfood also has a brand called Health 1. This brand makes different health supplements. These include vitamins, minerals, and extracts from plants and animals, like red ginseng.
Working Together: Lotte Food and Lotte Wellfood
It's interesting to know that Lotte Wellfood is part of the same Lotte Group as Lotte Food. Even though they were part of the same big family, they used to compete with each other, especially in the ice cream business.
In February 2022, the company thought about combining the ice cream businesses of Lotte Food and Lotte Confectionery. On March 23, they decided to merge with Lotte Food. The merger was approved by shareholders on May 27 and finished on July 1, 2022. This brought their food businesses together under one roof.
See also
- List of companies of South Korea
- Lotte
