Haemajin launch enters duty-free shops; company links regional farm products with tourism
HS Nature Korea, a Suncheon-based company, has launched Haemajin, the first product under its own food brand Haegungbichaek, marking its formal entry into the consumer market.
The Haegungbichaek brand is built around seahorses farmed in the clean waters off Jeju Island, which serve as the primary ingredient in the company's product lineup.
HS Nature Korea held a launch ceremony for Haemajin at Amor Wedding Hall in Suncheon on Friday, drawing about 100 attendees including Suncheon City Council Speaker Yoo Young-cheol, business partners and company executives.
At the event, the company introduced the Haegungbichaek brand and presented the development and release process for Haemajin, a tablet-form food product.
The company has consistently developed the product in partnership with Haecheonma, a Jeju-based seahorse specialist, establishing a joint framework for raw material supply and production.
Haemajin combines seahorse as its main ingredient with red ginseng, black maca and other materials, formulated as a general food product in tablet form.
Haemajin has secured placement in the international duty-free shop at Jeju International Airport, Lotte Duty Free on Jeju Island and the international cruise terminal at Jeju's Gangjeong Port, with additional listings at Incheon International Airport and Lotte Duty Free in Busan in the works.
HS Nature Korea plans to build brand recognition through international airports, cruise terminals and duty-free shops, then expand into export markets by identifying overseas distribution partners and conducting country-by-country market research.
The company intends to broaden its product range beyond Haemajin and gradually extend its business into beauty and marine biotech.
Another pillar of HS Nature Korea's strategy is co-growth with the local community.
The company is preparing to research and develop follow-up products using regional agricultural specialties, including Suncheon's signature plum.
The company is also pursuing ties with the tourism sector, drawing on the inbound tourism experience accumulated by its parent, HS Leisure Industry, to build a business model that connects tourist attraction with local stays, spending and product sales.
Over the medium to long term, the company plans to secure a regional duty-free retail space targeting foreign tourists.
The vision is to create a distribution space that showcases and sells not only its own products but also agricultural specialties from Suncheon and South Jeolla Province, as well as quality goods from local companies, channeling tourist spending into a new sales outlet for the region.
"We do not want to stop at selling a single product — we want to turn the region's finest ingredients into competitive products and connect them to broader markets through tourism and duty-free retail," said Kim In-bae, chief executive of HS Nature Korea. "We will keep nurturing a brand that started locally until it can compete not just at home but in overseas markets as well."
parkds@heraldcorp.com
