‘Chewing Gum Tycoon’ of Lotte Group, Shin Kyuk-ho, Dies at 98

Lotte helped spawn, and then benefited from, a rising consumer culture in South Korea as the middle class expanded with the rapid growth of an export-driven economy.

In the 1980s, Lotte executives objected when Mr. Shin began building Lotte World, a landmark hotel, mall and amusement-park complex, in Jamsil, then a sandy wilderness in southern Seoul. They said there was no market there.

But Mr. Shin predicted correctly that Lotte World would attract such throngs that the area would have chronic traffic jams.

Today, Lotte is a household name in South Korea, running 90 affiliates that together ​​generate 100 trillion won, or $86 billion, in annual revenues. The name graces hotels, department stores and apartment buildings, as well as nationwide chains of shopping malls, theme parks, movie theaters, duty-free stores, coffee shops and fast-food restaurants.

Mr. Shin kept his last promise for his home country — building South Korea’s tallest building — when Lotte completed its 123-story Lotte World Tower in Jamsil in 2017.

“His generous investment in his war-devastated home​ ​country and his dedication helped rebuild ​South Korea and lay the foundation of its economic prosperity,” the Federation of Korean Industries, a lobby for big businesses​, said Sunday in a statement​.

Despite his success, Mr. Shin’s reputation ​was tarnished in his last years.

While he ​involved his children ​in the company’s management, ​he held on to his ​kinglike control, never establishing a clear heir apparent.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/19/world/asia/lotte-shin-kyuk-ho-die.html?emc=rss&partner=rss