Domestic group meal service companies are expanding their business beyond traditional on-site cafeterias into airports, aircraft, and overseas industrial complexes. Rather than following the previous model of entering markets alongside Korean companies’ overseas production facilities, they are actively seeking new growth drivers by directly securing local enterprises as clients.
According to industry sources on Thursday, CJ Freshway’s cumulative revenue for the first three quarters of this year reached 271.85 billion won, up approximately 5.2% from the same period last year (258.31 billion won). Operating profit declined by 18.6% due to the impact of investment in its online food ingredient platform, Sikbom, but the group meal service business continued its growth trajectory. Group meal service revenue for the third quarter this year was 241.8 billion won, a 6.3% increase from the same period last year.
CJ Freshway is expanding its traditional cafeteria-centric meal service business into multi-user facilities such as airports. A representative example is “Gourmet Bridge,” the food and beverage facility it operates at Incheon International Airport. The facility opened in January this year with four stores and approximately 1,500 seats. Driven by factors including an increase in airport passengers, its concession business grew by 3% in the third quarter of this year compared to the same period last year.
Samsung Wellstory’s overseas expansion is particularly notable. Its cumulative revenue for the first three quarters of this year was 264.5 billion won, a 7.3% increase from the same period last year (246.5 billion won). The acquisition of new overseas meal service sites and an increase in the number of meals served drove the performance growth.
Samsung Wellstory has expanded its business from Asia to Europe by entering Hungary after China and Vietnam. It provides 300,000 meals per day across approximately 130 overseas meal service sites. About 80% of these overseas sites are external facilities not affiliated with Samsung Group companies, as the company has built an independent sales network targeting local enterprises.
For its Hungarian subsidiary established in 2024, revenue for the first half of this year was 8.4 billion won, a 79.2% increase from the same period last year. In Vietnam, the company secured the top market share in the local group meal service sector and continues to win orders from new clients. Samsung Wellstory has set a goal to raise the proportion of overseas business in its total revenue to 30% by 2033.
Hyundai Green Food is also cultivating its overseas meal service business as a growth driver. Its cumulative revenue for the first three quarters of this year was 186.85 billion won, up 7.4% from the same period last year (173.98 billion won). As new orders expanded at its overseas meal service subsidiaries, operating profit for overseas subsidiaries in the third quarter of this year increased by 300 million won compared to the same period last year.
Through the first half of this year, revenue from Hyundai Green Food’s meal service subsidiaries in China, the United States, and Mexico was 15.8 billion won, a 25.4% increase from the first half of last year. By expanding its Korean cuisine menu lineup at overseas sites to include tteokbokki (spicy rice cakes) and japchae (glass noodle) rice, the number of Korean meals served increased by 75%.
Our Home has also expanded its airport concession and overseas meal service businesses. By opening “Culinary Square by Our Home” at Gimpo Airport in March this year, it broadened its operations to three domestic airports: Incheon, Jeju, and Gimpo. Last year’s airport concession revenue increased by 367% compared to 2023. The company operates approximately 100 meal service sites across six countries overseas and supplies in-flight meals to airlines in more than 10 countries through its U.S.-based in-flight catering subsidiary, HACOR.
An industry official said, “While the domestic group meal service market continues to thrive amid high inflation, there are limits to sustained growth relying solely on existing sites.” The official added, “We are seeking growth drivers by broadening our customer base to include local overseas enterprises and leveraging our food ingredient procurement and logistics capabilities to generate synergies.”
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