Pulmuone Food & Culture will launch contract food service operations at Korean companies' North American business sites in June, aiming to make this year the starting point for its overseas expansion.
"We plan to concentrate our company-wide capabilities on North America to minimize initial risks and create success stories through stable operations," said Lee Dong-hoon, CEO of Pulmuone Food & Culture. "Through this, we will establish a foundation to leap forward as a global company."
Lee explained that the company is initially reviewing regions where Korean companies have expanded and markets with high growth potential, with a long-term goal of becoming a competitive food service company in the global market.
The company chose North America as its first overseas market because Korean companies have actively expanded there, suggesting significant scalability for the food service business. Several years ago, multiple Korean companies operating overseas had expressed interest in Pulmuone Food & Culture's services, but deals fell through due to the COVID-19 pandemic or insufficient number of business sites.
The renewed push for overseas expansion comes as the domestic contract food service market's growth is slowing while overseas markets are expected to grow rapidly.
"In recent years, it has been difficult to find new large-scale investments, factory complexes, or office complexes domestically, while Korean companies' overseas expansion has become much more active than before," Lee said. "Ultimately, we need to move together with Korean companies going abroad."
He added that the company will cautiously approach markets where its operational capabilities and food culture philosophy can succeed, based on Pulmuone's global network and brand credibility. "We aim to differentiate ourselves through healthy and sustainable food culture, plant-based menu competitiveness, and systematic food service operation systems," Lee emphasized.
Lee is also exploring the contract food service market at overseas universities and international schools. Since foreign university campuses are large and outsource food services by individual food stations, he sees potential to enter this market with Korean cuisine, which is gaining popularity abroad.
"I personally visited various American universities and found that many schools were operating bibimbap stations," Lee said. "Even though the ingredients and taste weren't particularly good, I noticed long lines forming, perhaps due to the K-food boom, which gave me the idea."
Lee added that the company is also considering entering the food service market at international schools overseas that have a high proportion of Korean students.