LF Establishes Subsidiary LF Investment to Foster Innovative Tech Startups
- New subsidiary to identify and support promising startups and venture companies with innovative technologies
- Goal to become registered finance company for new tech projects and seek new benefits from lifestyle and consumer goods platform investments
- Plans to build model startup ecosystem for shared growth through long-term investment and comprehensive support
LF, the lifestyle culture company, has announced the establishment of its new subsidiary, LF Investment, to identify and support the growth of startup companies with innovative technologies and build a new structure for shared growth.
On July 14, 2022, LF established a wholly-owned subsidiary, LF Investment (capital of 11 billion won), to register itself as a finance company for new tech projects. Currently, LF Investment’s application is pending at the Financial Supervisory Service. Once the application is approved, plans will be set in motion to expand its investment scale and start full-scale investment and support activities for promising startups and venture companies as a venture capital business.
LF Investment is keen to identify and invest in platform companies or startups that not only relate to lifestyle and consumption trends dominated by LF, such as fashion, beauty, e-commerce, and food, but that are also digital or tech-based. The strategy is to strengthen the value chain of existing businesses in areas that can work together with LF, while developing new future businesses. Furthermore, LF plans to contribute in building a virtuous cycle ecosystem for startups by managing and supporting investments with venture companies and new tech companies in a manner that is mutually beneficial.
LF is pushing ahead to establish this financing business for new tech projects on the belief that new technological innovations and internal developments must be sought if new changes and lifestyles are to be developed in the rapidly changing consumer market, which is entering the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Specifically, although LF avidly promotes mergers and acquisitions through internal organizations to diversify its business, in the future, it intends to promote such operations through its newly established finance company, which will secure growth in various fields by organically cooperating with LF affiliates, as well as LF itself.
Oh Kyu-sik, CEO of LF, commented, “Due to the rapidly changing and infinitely competitive market where the boundaries between fields are blurring, we need to differentiate ourselves, whilst also ensuring future growth. The time has come to find outstanding innovations from external sources and undertake dramatic internal changes.” He further explained, “Through long-term investments and comprehensive support for promising start-ups that present mutually beneficial opportunities, we plan to build a start-up ecosystem of shared growth where LF and these small-to-medium-sized venture companies can continue to move forward together.”
Photo Description: LF Investment CI