The Born Korea CEO Baek Jong-won [Yonhap]
The Born Korea CEO Baek Jong-won [Yonhap]

Shares of The Born Korea, the restaurant franchise company led by celebrity chef Baek Jong-won, surged Friday.

The stock closed up 12.78 percent at 15,890 won on Friday, its biggest single-day gain since listing.

It was the first significant gap-up rally for the stock since it began a prolonged slide following its initial public offering in November 2024.

The Born Korea debuted at 58,300 won on its first trading day in November 2024, then fell steadily, hitting a low of 12,130 won on July 30 — a drop of 79 percent from its first-day high and 64 percent below its IPO price of 34,000 won.

Analysts have cited several factors behind the decline. Critics raised concerns even at the time of the IPO that the offering price was too high relative to the company's earnings and growth prospects. Those worries deepened as Baek's public image deteriorated after listing and the company's financial results came in worse than expected. In the first quarter of this year, The Born Korea posted sales of 79.6 billion won, down 28.1 percent from the same period last year, and recorded an operating loss of 4.2 billion won — its fourth consecutive quarter of operating losses, stretching back to the second quarter of last year.

Friday's rebound reflects growing optimism about the company's overseas expansion plans.

The Born Korea said Baek had visited restaurants in Los Angeles to promote the international rollout of its TBK sauce line.

According to the company, Baek visited a restaurant in Los Angeles, introduced menu items featuring TBK sauces, and discussed product supply and recipe applications with staff there. The visit is intended as a stepping stone toward broadening the company's overseas outreach beyond food and retail companies to include local restaurant operators.

The company also said it is in talks with businesses in the United States and Thailand on supply and retail distribution arrangements for TBK sauces, and is exploring the possibility of signing MOUs with those partners before the end of the year.


paq@heraldcorp.com