Chairman Lee Jay-hyun Returns to U.S. After Three Months… CJ Targets KRW 12 Trillion Sales in North America

Chairman Lee Attends 'KCON' with Vice Chairwoman Miky Lee and Kyunghoo Lee
CJ Announces Vision to Achieve KRW 12 Trillion North America Sales by 2028
Lee: "We Will Evolve as a Global K-Lifestyle Leader"
Organically Linking K-Food, Content,

CJ Group Chairman Lee Jay-hyun visited the United States again, just three months after his trip last May, to review the overall business operations. As CJ Group has unveiled its vision to achieve 12 trillion won in North American sales by 2028, Chairman Lee's visit is seen as a strong display of determination to target the North American market.

CJ Chairman Jay Y. Lee, who visited KCON LA 2026, is touring the Olive Young Festa. Provided by CJ.

Chairman Lee Jay-hyun Returns to On-site Management in the U.S. After Three Months

According to CJ Group on the 17th, Chairman Lee toured the Olive Young Festa in Los Angeles (LA), California, on the 14th (local time) and then visited the 'K-Collection' booth, which supports the global expansion of Korean small and medium-sized enterprises. It has been three months since he personally visited major U.S. operations and ordered North American growth strategies in May. While the previous visit focused on setting out mid- to long-term growth directions, this time, his focus was on directly inspecting how K-contents, K-food, and K-beauty are spreading into the daily lives of American youth.

He also personally assessed product competitiveness. At the Festa, after tasting the Bibigo Kimchi Noodles recently launched in the U.S., Chairman Lee commented, "It needs more kick." The intent was to emphasize that further differentiation is needed in local markets to capture the tastes of local consumers.

Chairman Lee stated, "Just as CJ's cultural business began 30 years ago with the conviction that 'culture is the future,' let’s now move forward as a 'global K-lifestyle leader' that fills people’s daily lives worldwide with content, food, and beauty."

On the following day, the 15th (local time), Chairman Lee attended 'KCON LA 2026' at Crypto.com Arena in LA, accompanied by his sister, Vice Chairwoman Miky Lee of CJ Group, and his eldest daughter, Lee Kyung-hoo, Head of Brand Strategy at CJ ENM. Chairman Lee joined the audience in singing "Not cute anymore" by ILLIT. According to CJ, as the stages of idol groups IZNA and ZEROBASEONE from WAKEONE, an agency under CJ ENM, unfolded, Chairman Lee reflected on his unique feelings regarding his 30-year journey investing in the culture business. Previously, Chairman Lee personally attended KCON in LA in 2017.

CJ Chairman Jay Y. Lee, who visited KCON LA 2026, is tasting mini wontons and kimchi ramen at the Bibigo booth. Photo by CJ.

Cumulative North American Investment Reaches 9.7 Trillion KRW, Targeting 12 Trillion KRW in Sales by 2028

CJ is redoubling its efforts in the U.S. market because it believes its 'K-Lifestyle' strategy—connecting K-food, content, and beauty—can maximize synergy between its businesses. On this day, CJ Group held the 'Global K-Lifestyle Vision' forum at the Hilton Glendale in LA, unveiling its North American business performance and mid- to long-term growth roadmap. CJ's goal is to expand its North American operations to achieve 12 trillion won in sales by 2028.

The United States accounts for approximately 26% of global GDP and around 31% of global household consumption, making it the world's largest consumer market and a strategic hub for global cultural and consumption trends. This is why CJ regards the U.S. not just as an overseas sales channel, but as a strategic foothold for global business expansion.

CJ made a full-scale entry into the U.S. market in 1995 by investing in the American film production company DreamWorks. Since 2012, it has hosted KCON and subsequently expanded its business into food, logistics, and content by acquiring companies such as logistics firm DSC Logistics, frozen food company Schwan's, and content production company Fifth Season. Recently, it has also added K-beauty to its business portfolio. As of the first half of this year, CJ's cumulative investment in North America reached 9.7 trillion won.

According to the 'Global K-Culture Influence Survey' conducted by CJ last December, 30% of 1,000 American respondents answered that they had purchased or consumed products from all K-categories, including K-food, beauty, pop, and content.

Furthermore, based on CJ's survey of 7,100 men and women aged 15 to 49 in 24 cities across 12 countries worldwide, overseas consumers are not limiting themselves to specific fields like K-pop or K-food. Instead, they are crossing boundaries, consuming a wide range of K-culture sectors. Interest sparked by content such as K-pop, dramas, or movies leads to consumption of K-food and K-beauty, which in turn expands to other K-culture experiences. CJ analyzed that K-culture has spread beyond being a one-time trend to become part of consumers' daily lifestyles.

CJ Group CEO Minhoe Hur is delivering opening remarks at the CJ Global K-Lifestyle Vision Forum held in California, USA. Provided by CJ.

Half of American Consumers Eat K-Food Weekly; Local Production to Expand

In response to these changes, CJ is set to fully implement its 'Global K-Lifestyle Phase 2 Growth Strategy.' Whereas previously the focus was on localization by brand and expanding production and distribution infrastructure, going forward, the aim is to organically connect food, content, and beauty to create an environment where consumers can continuously experience K-lifestyle.

CJ CEO Minhoe Hur stated, "When CJ started its cultural business 30 years ago, we envisioned that people around the world would watch Korean movies once or twice a year, eat Korean food or visit Korean restaurants once or twice a month, watch Korean dramas once or twice a week, and download and listen to K-pop songs. Although it’s not perfectly realized, that vision from 30 years ago is now becoming more of a reality."

He added, "CJ has been investing in the U.S. for 20 to 30 years and is unique in the world in having a portfolio that encompasses food, content, beauty, and culture. Based on this, we will continue to go beyond the K-wave to build the K-lifestyle ecosystem and further target the North American market."

At the forum, the growth strategy for K-food in North America was also unveiled. CJ CheilJedang plans to strengthen its attack on the mainstream food market in the U.S. by leveraging Bibigo, which has secured competitiveness in the Asian foods category. The strategy is to continue expanding local production infrastructure and distribution networks, broaden the range of room-temperature products, and position Bibigo as the representative global K-food brand.

Federico Areola, Head of Asian Foods BU at CJ Schwan's, commented, "Within our U.S. food business, Korean food is one of the most notable growth opportunities. CJ currently competes for the No. 1 and 2 spots in overall shares of Asian foods, frozen pizza, and desserts markets in the United States—and can be found nearly everywhere Americans shop or dine."

CJ analyzed that American consumers are quickly adopting and experiencing Korean food among Asian cuisines. The proportion of U.S. consumers eating Korean food once a week was only 28% in 2017. As of last year, however, half of American consumers now eat Korean food once a week. Accordingly, CJ is constructing a new plant in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, with a site area of 575,000 square meters, aiming for completion next year.

Kim Jin-sik, CEO of CJ America, commented, "We are building an Asian food production hub in South Dakota. Once completed, this plant will not only meet demand for growth products like dumplings and egg rolls, but also offer expansion capacity in mind."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.