Samjo Celltech president Jeong Yong-se said on October 24, "As more and more Korean food companies move in to the Chinese market in areas such as tuna cans, pizza, and baked goods, we figure there will be strong demand for sauces and seasonings."

 

The company reached a sales revenue of 121 billion won last year, with most of the sales realized in business-to-business transactions. Its main customers Paris Baguette and Tous Les Jours, both Korea-based companies belonging to SPC Group and CJ Group respectively, have announced their plans to expand their store location numbers in China up to 500 (by 2015) and 1,600 (by 2017). Currently the two bakery operators have 125 and 34 stores in China, respectively. Mr. Pizza, Samjo's another important customer, also plans to establish up to 1,000 locations in China by 2018 from current 23.

 

In addition, Samjo is supplying seasoning ingredients to Orion Confectionery China which has more than 1 trillion won in sales revenue in China alone. All ingredients to be supplied to Orion will be produced in Samjo's Weihai plant.

 

President Jeong said, "As Chinese consumers demand increasingly higher sanitary and safety standards, we expect that there will be stronger demand for Korean-brand food items." The company had been acquired in 2007 by Dongwon Food & Beverage and has since more than doubled its sales revenue from 58 billion won in six years.