"Changing Corporate Image" SPC Second Son Heo Hee-su 'Steps Up'... 'BaeRa' Partners with Google

Heo Hee-soo, the second son of Heo Young-in, chairman of SPC, and Chief Strategy Officer (Group Vice President) of BR Korea, has stepped to the forefront of management. As Chairman Heo was arrested and indicted on charges of coercing Paris Baguette bakers to withdraw from the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), creating a management vacuum, the official emergence of the second son has drawn attention to the succession structure.

On the 15th, after completing a new product launch event at 'Workshop by Baskin-Robbins (Workshop)' in Dogok-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, Vice President Heo told reporters, "We will attempt to change the corporate image," adding, "We have been misunderstood a lot, but through this event, we will grow significantly to become a better company loved by customers."

Heo Hee-su, Vice President of SPC, is giving a greeting while unveiling the new menu item 'Tropical Summer Play' at the new menu launch event held on the 15th at 'Workshop by Baskin-Robbins' in Seocho-gu, Seoul.

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On the same day, Baskin-Robbins unveiled its summer limited menu 'Tropical Summer Play,' developed using AI technology. The new product was developed utilizing Google's latest AI model 'Gemini.' It was created through a question-and-answer process to select ingredients matching the four logo colors of Google Play, reflecting popular summer season search keywords, and combining the visual and ingredient composition of the Google Play logo colors with Baskin-Robbins' technology to complete the product.

This is Baskin-Robbins' second AI-based ice cream following 'Orange Earl Grey,' developed using the next-generation product development model 'AI NPD (New Product Development) system' at Workshop.

Vice President Heo evaluated the collaboration, saying, "Two companies leading their respective industries in IT and food have demonstrated new brand innovation through advanced technology." He added, "It is meaningful that Baskin-Robbins materialized the product idea proposed by Google's latest AI Gemini and supplied it to stores nationwide," and said, "This was possible thanks to SPC's 80 years of accumulated research and development (R&D) technology and know-how."

Vice President Heo also expressed his ambition to expand AI technology utilization across the entire group. He said, "Although it started with Baskin-Robbins, we plan to expand AI utilization to Samlip Food and Paris Baguette as well," adding, "Going forward, SPC Group will continue developing products targeting consumer demand and trends using next-generation technologies including AI, and leverage this as a stepping stone to expand influence beyond Korea to overseas markets."

On the 15th, at the launch event held at 'Workshop by Baskin-Robbins' in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, officials are posing for a commemorative photo holding the new menu items.

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As Chairman Heo and other SPC executives face consecutive trials, Vice President Heo's direct involvement in the field at the new product launch and his disclosure of the company's blueprint have drawn attention to the succession structure of SPC Group.

Chairman Heo was arrested and indicted on charges of coercing about 570 union members of the KCTU Hwaseom Food Workers' Union Paris Baguette branch, a subsidiary of SPC called PB Partners, to withdraw from the union from February 2021 to July 2022, as the branch continued activities critical of management.

Within SPC Group, both of Chairman Heo's sons, Heo Jin-soo, president of Paris Croissant, and Vice President Heo Hee-soo, are mentioned as succession candidates.

The eldest son, President Heo Jin-soo, joined Paris Croissant as a director in 2005 and was recognized for leading the expansion of the Paris Baguette brand in overseas bases such as North America and Europe after becoming head of the Paris Croissant Global Business Unit (BU) in 2014. He was promoted to president in 2021. Earlier, in March 2019, he oversaw the completion of the SCP Tianjin factory in China and led global business through the opening of Jewel Changi in Singapore in April of the same year. In 2021, he actively expanded overseas business by entering Cambodia and Indonesia through joint venture (JV) strategies. This year, he continues to focus on expanding the number of overseas stores with aggressive openings.

Chairman Hyungin Heo of SPC Group. [Image source=Yonhap News]

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The second son, Vice President Heo, joined Paris Croissant as a director in 2007 and led the domestic market establishment of 'Shake Shack,' holding the position of SPC Group Vice President since 2016. However, after causing social controversy due to a drug scandal in 2018 and undergoing trial, he was excluded from work but was appointed as the head executive of the new business division of Sect Nine, an SPC Group affiliate related to network systems, in November 2021, three years later.

Subsequently, in 2022, he was appointed Chief Strategy Officer of BR Korea, a subsidiary operating Baskin-Robbins and others, managing BR Korea-related businesses along with Sect Nine. Recently, he has been leading brand innovation for Baskin-Robbins by applying AI, including opening the AI-applied space 'Workshop by Baskin-Robbins.'

The newly introduced Tropical Summer Play features a flavor combination using light yet refreshing summer representative fruits. The red, yellow, green, and blue colors of the Google Play logo are each represented by a combination of four sherbets and sorbets?mango, orange, apple, and passion fruit?adding visual enjoyment. Go Eun-kyung, a researcher in Baskin-Robbins' ice cream development team, explained, "The sherbets and sorbets, which are low in milk fat and refreshing, make it a perfect taste to cool down during the hot summer." Tropical Summer Play, born from an unusual promotion with Google Play, will be available for a limited time during the summer season.

Kay Shin, Head of Platform and Devices for the Asia-Pacific region at Google Play, who planned this project, stated, "Gemini is an AI that understands data ranging from text to images and videos, so not only developers but also ordinary people can use it by providing photos of ingredients in their refrigerators to receive recipe recommendations," adding, "Google will continue to lead AI development through Gemini."

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