On Tuesday night, Lotte founder and general chairman Shin Kyuk-ho appeared at the Gimpo International Airport from his trip to Japan.
On a wheelchair, he looked tired and dim, refusing to answer any media questions.
It was a long day for Shin, who was sacked as chairman of the board of Lotte Holdings in Japan — the de facto control tower of both Lotte in Japan and Korea — and thus had to step down from the helm of the 90 trillion won-business empire. Lotte said he will be posted as an honorary chairman and receive business reports but insiders admitted that his role will have no influence in the operations.
The descent of the 93-year-old business tycoon was dramatic.
Lotte Group on Tuesday disclosed that his dismissal came after he had attempted to sack his heir and second son Shin Dong-bin on Monday in Tokyo upon request from his eldest son and ousted-Lotte Japan leader Shin Dong-joo. The infuriated Dong-bin flew over to Japan the next day and fired his own father through the anxious board members, company officials said.
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| Lotte founder and genreal chairman Shin Kyuk-ho arrives at Gimpo International Airport on Tuesday night. Yonhap |
Such tantrums took the industry by total surprise since the senior Shin was known to have had complete control over his sons with his charisma and money. “There were possibilities of a family feud over power transition but we thought it would happen after the general chairman’s death,” an insider said.
Born in 1922, Shin moved to Japan at the age of 19. He founded chewing gum maker Lotte in 1948 and later expanded to chocolates and other confectionaries.
In 1967, two years after Seoul and Tokyo formalized diplomatic ties, he expanded his business to South Korea and has made a success here.
Under Shin, who is known to have eyes for real estate, ears for trends and the brain for money, Lotte became South Korea’s fifth largest conglomerate with 76 affiliates generating 83 trillion won revenue in 2013. His Korean business ranged from food to entertainment, petrochemicals, construction and trade, leisure and retail, while Lotte Japan with 37 affiliates generated 5.7 trillion won-sales during the same time.
Such growth led Shin to be named the world’s 9th wealthiest man by Forbes magazine in 1990.
In 2005, the senior Shin named his eldest son Dong-joo the leader of Lotte Japan including Lotte Holdings, while putting his second son Dong-bin in charge of Lotte Korea, staying away from the limelight.
Nonetheless, Shin has remained very hands-on about major projects including the construction of the 123-story Lotte World Tower in southern Seoul. It was reported on Monday that the 93-year-old still receives daily reports about the construction, which is expected to complete in late 2016.
“There have been reports that general chairman Shin Kyuk-ho has been not very bright recently. He sacked the Japanese CEO of Lotte Holdings on Monday but later that day cheered him, arousing suspicions that he does not know what he is doing. But still, what the business mogul has achieved will be acknowledged by history,” an industrial analyst said.
By Bae Ji-sook (baejisook@heraldcorp.com)
