LG H&H Co. is exploring the sale of its Haitai HTB beverage subsidiary as part of broader restructuring efforts, though the South Korean cosmetics giant has explicitly denied that its more valuable Coca-Cola bottling operations are on the block.
The company has appointed KPMG Samjong as adviser for the potential divestment of Haitai HTB, which industry sources value at approximately 250 billion won ($180 million), according to reports Thursday. The move comes as LG H&H grapples with deteriorating profitability across its beverage operations.
“We are taking various options into account, but no specific decision has been made yet,” a company official said, emphasizing that any Coca-Cola bottling sale has “never been considered.”
The restructuring signals deeper challenges at South Korea’s second-largest cosmetics firm. Revenue has tumbled from a peak of 8 trillion won ($5.8 billion) in 2021 to the 6 trillion won range last year, primarily due to struggles in its core beauty business.
The beverage division’s operating profit plunged 21.9 percent last year to 168.1 billion won, despite a modest 1 percent revenue increase to 1.82 trillion won. Haitai HTB performed worse, with operating profit collapsing 74 percent to just 3.6 billion won on 414 billion won in revenue.
LG H&H acquired the Coca-Cola bottling rights in 2007 for 385.3 billion won and purchased Haitai HTB from Asahi Breweries in 2010.
