HiteJinro strengthens its globalized soju business by building an overseas production plant ahead of its 100th anniversary next year.
HiteJinro Singapore announced on October 16 that it has signed a sublease agreement with the operator of Green I-Park Industrial Park in Thai Binh, Vietnam, to build a soju production plant in Vietnam. This is the first time HiteJinro is building a production plant overseas.
HiteJinro Singapore signed the land infrastructure sublease agreement on October 13 in Thai Binh, Vietnam, in the presence of Kim In-kyu, CEO of HiteJinro, Hwang Jeong-ho, President of HiteJinro, Nguyen Tien Thanh, Permanent Deputy General Secretary of Thai Binh province, and Nguyen Khac Than, Chairman of the People's Committee of Thai Binh province.
In September, HiteJinro announced the establishment of a Singapore subsidiary to establish a headquarters for overseas production and sales to expand the global soju market. As its first project, HiteJinro Singapore will build a soju production plant in Thai Binh, Vietnam.
The company said that the continued growth of the overseas soju market, cost competitiveness, and the potential to launch local brands and products are the reasons behind the establishment of the plant.
Over the past six years, HiteJinro's shochu exports have grown at an average annualized rate of approximately 15%. The growth trend is expected to continue, and in the next 10 years, the company expects its overseas soju sales to more than triple from 2022.
"HiteJinro Singapore is pleased to announce the construction of our first overseas plant," said Hwang Jung Ho, Managing Director of HiteJinro Singapore. "The Vietnamese soju production plant will serve as a bridgehead for the globalization of HiteJinro's soju business."
