Signed an MOU with SKT… Acquisition of shares held by Emart SKT
“Customer experience and know-how gathering, creating a happy baseball field”
Shinsegae Group acquires Incheon SK Wyverns professional baseball team.
On the 26th, Shinsegae Group and SK Telecom signed an MOU with E-Mart to acquire 100% of SK Wyverns’ shares held by SKT.
The acquisition amount is 100 billion won, and the total price, including the acquisition of assets such as training grounds, is 135.58 billion won.
Despite the change of the operator, the related site will remain in Incheon. In addition, the coaching staff, the athletes and the front are also 100% employed, continuing the heritage of Incheon baseball that SK Wyverns has built up.
Shinsegae Group has been trying to acquire a professional baseball team since several years ago to integrate online and offline and expand the online market. In the midst of this, Shinsegae Group decided that there would be great synergy between existing consumers and baseball fans as the intersection and sharing experience of existing consumers and baseball fans would be great, so it promoted the acquisition of SK Wyverns.
Shinsegae Group believes that, as professional baseball enters the era of 8 million spectators, it will be possible to expand various’consumer experiences’ if the expanding fans and consumers of the Shinsegae Group are combined. In particular, it was noted that the strong baseball fan base coincided with the leading consumer base in the online market.
Shinsegae Group expects that baseball fans and consumers can communicate without boundaries and share experiences, creating mutual synergy.
Shinsegae Group’s ambition is to not only inherit the history of SK Wyverns, but also to actively invest for the growth of Incheon Baseball and even Korean professional baseball to grow into a club loved by fans.
Shinsegae Group provides new experiences and services to consumers who visit the baseball field, contributing to the qualitative and quantitative development of professional baseball from’watching baseball’ to’playing baseball’, while concentrating its capabilities to become a’shinsegae fan’ outside the baseball field. I plan to do it.
Shinsegae Group first evolves the baseball field into a’lifestyle center’ that combines the consumer experience and know-how of Shinsegae Group for the enjoyment of professional baseball fans watching baseball.
Through this, it is expected that fans who visit the baseball field can enjoy not only baseball but also various services offered by Shinsegae Group in one place, further enhancing the fun of watching baseball.
In addition, in order to create an era of 10 million professional baseball spectators with baseball fans, we will actively expand infrastructure by collecting opinions from fans, local communities, and related organizations and promoting the construction of multipurpose facilities including the dome in the long term.
In addition, we are considering providing opportunities for more people to interact with professional baseball even outside the baseball field by developing and introducing related products and services in various categories by making the most of our product development capabilities.
Meanwhile, with the signing of the MOU, the movement related to the acquisition of the baseball team is expected to accelerate.
Shinsegae Group and SK Telecom plan to speed up discussions with the Korea Baseball Commission (KBO) and Incheon Metropolitan City. In addition, working-level discussions related to the launch of the club will be concluded as soon as possible, and preparations for the opening of the 2021 KBO regular season, which will open in April, will be accelerated.
Shinsegae Group has already formed a working-level team to prepare for the foundation, and it is planning to continue preparations without a hitch in time for the start of the season. In addition, the club’s naming, emblem, and character will be confirmed soon, and will be officially launched in March.
[신아일보] Reporter Kim So-hee
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