Faring Well amid Global Depression
Korean snack and confectionary maker Orion Group said that it recorded sales of 1.16 trillion won (US$1.06 billion) as of consolidated financial statements in the first half of this year, up 1.6 percent from the same period a year ago. Despite the prolonged global economic depression, the group showed relatively good results.
The company minimized the decrease in sales in Korea as it released a string of hit products, such as Choco Pie Banana and Chip Soy Sauce Chicken Flavor, in the face of a fire at the Incheon plant in January and the slip in popularity of sweet snacks.
Orion plans to actively respond to the stagnation in the market by launching more than 10 kinds of new products, including snack, like Poka chip Roasted Laver Flavor that came into the market in July, pie, biscuit and gum, in the second half of the year
Orion China saw its sales grow 4.6 percent in four categories of pie, snack, biscuit and gum, though the Chinese confectionery market grew as low as 0.6 percent year on year in the first half of the year, surpassing the market growth. It is a very meaningful achievement considering the fact that many global leading confectionery firms showed a minus growth or a 1 percent growth.
With the high growth of sales in snacks, mainly Toonies and O'Star, and in new products, such as Xylitol Gym and Corn Chip that were released last year, Orion Vietnam saw a 20.5 percent growth year on year. The company plans to boost sales by launching new products, including biscuit and snack, and supply products to a joint venture with Delfi, the largest confectionery producer in Indonesia, in the second half of the year, actively expanding the market.
Orion Russia also showed some nine percent of the growth rate based on the local currency by focusing on the improvement of profitability despite unfavorable economic conditions.