SEOUL, KOREA - Ourhome, a market leader in corporate catering services, is at a crossroads. According to the Financial Supervisory Service, the company posted sales of 1,192 billion won last year, down 3.49 percent from a year ago.
This is the first time for Ourhome to post a negative growth in annual sales since it was spun off from LG Group 13 years ago. Key factors behind the negative growth include the new regulations that prevent large companies from the business of providing catering services to public organizations.
After maintaining the leadership in the corporate catering market since 2000, Ourhome lost its No. 1 spot to Samsung Everland last year. Everland's FC business, responsible for the group's catering services, achieved sales of 1.27 trillion won last year, up 17.1 percent from a year ago.
Ourhome's other rivals, including Hyundai Green Food, Shinsegae Food, and CJ Freshway all marked a positive year-on-year growth in sales last year. Ourhome, which provides catering services in seven out of 43 public organizations, was hit harder than others by the government's new regulation. In two out of the seven public organizations, Ourhome was replaced by smaller operators. The company is expected to be replaced by small catering firms in five additional public organizations this year.
