Lee Boo-jin, CEO of Hotel Shilla (008770.KS), has signaled her commitment to responsible management by announcing a plan to purchase approximately 20 billion won ($14.5 million) in treasury shares.
Hotel Shilla said in a regulatory filing Thursday that Lee plans to acquire a total of 470,000 shares through open-market purchases over approximately 30 days starting June 27. The expected purchase price is 42,700 won per share, bringing the total acquisition to approximately 20 billion won. The shares represent about 1.18% of the company's 40 million total issued shares. The move is interpreted as Lee's effort to demonstrate confidence in the company's growth and her commitment to enhancing shareholder value by directly increasing her stake.
Han In-gyu, Hotel Shilla's chief operating president, also purchased treasury shares. Han bought 4,800 common shares at 41,710 won per share through the open market on June 25. The acquisition totaled approximately 200 million won, bringing his stake to 0.01%.
At a shareholders' meeting on June 19, minority shareholders had raised concerns over sluggish earnings, declining share prices and low dividend payouts. Lee responded, "I take the earnings slump very seriously," adding, "I will do my best to communicate with shareholders."
Lee also emphasized a strategy centered on business restructuring and profitability. For the duty-free segment, the plan is to secure a stable earnings base through structural improvements. For the hotel segment, the goal is to build a foundation for sustainable growth leveraging brand competitiveness.
By business segment, the hotel division operates approximately 20 hotels domestically and internationally, centered on the Shilla Stay brand, maintaining steady expansion. The strategy going forward is to broaden the business scope based on brand competitiveness. The duty-free division, meanwhile, has been focusing on business restructuring, operational efficiency and risk management since the COVID-19 pandemic to restore profitability. The company expects improvement effects to become visible starting this year.