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Shinsegae Chairman Jung Yong-jin Returns as Emart CEO, Co-CEO System with Kim Hong-geuk

Policy1 min read

Shinsegae Group chairman Chung Yong-jin is returning as CEO of Emart, the group's big discount store chain. He will co-lead Emart with Kim Hong-geuk, and the group also made large leadership changes.

What happened

Shinsegae Group announced its regular 2027 executive reshuffle on the 23rd. Chung Yong-jin will officially become Emart CEO after a shareholder meeting. He will share the top job with Kim Hong-geuk, who will also run SSG.com. The group also swapped key posts at its control office and brought in outside experts.

Key numbers and facts

  • 36 people were promoted to new executive posts, the most ever for the group.
  • People in their 40s make up 18% of all executives, the highest share ever.
  • Kim Hong-geuk turned a loss into a profit at Shinsegae TV Shopping and has improved profits at Shinsegae Casa since 2022.
  • Heo Min-ho, former CEO of CJ Olive Young, was named to lead Shinsegae Casa. He spent about 10 years growing that chain.

Why the changes were made

Chung Yong-jin already became CEO of Shinsegae Property in June. Now he is taking a direct role in Emart too. The group says it wants to strengthen its core retail business and move into new areas like artificial intelligence (AI), content, and entertainment. It is working with global partners such as Reflection AI, Aman Group, and Skydance.

Why it matters

The chairman is personally leading the group's main businesses at a time when AI is changing industries quickly. The company says it chose people based on results and kept some strong subsidiary leaders in place to keep the organization stable.

What to watch

  • Whether Chung Yong-jin's return at Emart is confirmed at the shareholder meeting.
  • How the two-leader setup at Emart and Shinsegae Property works in practice.
  • Whether the group makes more surprise personnel changes, as it has said it may do.
  • How the new AI, content, and entertainment deals turn into real business.

Glossary

Emart
A large Korean retail chain that sells groceries and everyday goods in big stores.
SSG.com
The online shopping business of Shinsegae Group.
CJ Olive Young
A Korean health and beauty store chain.
Shinsegae Casa
A Shinsegae Group company that sells furniture and home goods.
AI
Artificial intelligence, computer systems that can learn and do tasks that usually need human thinking.

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