This article was published on January 26, 2021 at 07:32 The Bell Paid PageIt is an article expressed in
Shinsegae Group’s acquisition of SK Wyverns, a subsidiary of SK Telecom, is not due to simple management judgment. It is said that it was decided to take over the baseball team to find value beyond the numbers.
In particular, as there are reports that E-Mart Co., Ltd., which came to the forefront, has also considered acquiring other baseball teams besides SK Wyverns, this deal can be interpreted as being made entirely through the active courtship of Shinsegae Group.
On the 26th, E-Mart, an affiliate of Shinsegae Group, and SK Telecom signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) contract for the transfer of shares of SK Wyverns. SK Wyverns, a wholly owned subsidiary of SK Telecom, is a professional baseball team founded in 2000.
A new name for the baseball team has not been decided yet. It is expected to be a name that utilizes various brands owned by E-Mart. For example, it is known that E-Mart’s home appliance brand, Electros, which is modeled after E-Mart, is on the agenda.
The price was not revealed because it was decided not to be disclosed under the contract, but it is said to be about 100 to 200 billion won. Considering that about 200 billion won came out when the sale of Doosan Bears, the Doosan Group’s baseball team, was in full swing, it is estimated to be similar.
E-Mart, the acquisition entity, has ample funding capacity. As of the end of September 2020, the cash equivalent is 703.7 billion won. Since the debt has been paid off, it is not burdensome even with a borrowing strategy.
This deal was jointly reviewed by E-Mart’s strategy department and Shinsegae Group’s strategy office. Opinions differ as to who contacted them first, but there are more opinions that E-Mart Co., Ltd. made the decision first. In particular, it is said that E-Mart Co., Ltd. considered SK Wyverns and Doosan Bears as well as all baseball teams for acquisition. This is a glimpse into how active E-Mart Co., Ltd. was in the acquisition of the baseball team.
SK Telecom is deeply concerned about’balanced sports development’ as SK Telecom is supporting various sports such as fencing, swimming, and sports for the disabled, as well as baseball. In this situation, it is said that E-Mart Co., Ltd. actively wooed and the deal was concluded as a consensus was formed between the two companies on the price range and operation method.
This deal was just under review, and it went on suddenly. That means that a considerable consensus has already been formed from the high-level Shinsegae Group. It was in the form of a report to the owner family after joint review by E-Mart Co., Ltd. and Shinsegae Group Strategy Office, but it means that the agenda for the acquisition of the baseball team reflected the intention of Jung Yong-jin, vice chairman of Shinsegae Group.
In the question of’Why E-Mart Co., Ltd. was active in acquiring the baseball team’,’value’, not number, is at stake. In an internal review, Shinsegae Group concluded that it is difficult to determine the value of the baseball team in terms of management numbers. However, it was judged that the baseball team was a necessary strategy to realize the value beyond that.
In this year’s New Year’s speech, Vice Chairman Jeong called for a re-imagining (re-imagine) to prepare for 10 years and a change of plate. He also ordered that it should naturally permeate the customer’s daily life. The emphasis is on finding new values that can coexist with the daily life of customers through various perspectives, not the strategy that E-Mart has been doing so far.
In particular, Vice Chairman Jeong has a philosophy that it should be a space where you can pursue pleasure such as an amusement park or theme park, not just a space for buying and selling objects. Reflecting this, it is analyzed that Shinsegae Group’s willingness to invest in assets that will be the subject of enjoyment led to the acquisition of the baseball team.
The baseball team is the joy that Shinsegae Group creates, and it is also a weapon that naturally blends into the daily lives of potential customers.
An official of Shinsegae Group said, “It was a sudden deal, and we put more emphasis on intangible value than economic value,” and said, “Look at it as an investment that can discover new value that cannot be quantified by numbers.”
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