 | |
 Hanssem corporate headquarters building | |
Native name | 주식회사 한샘 |
|---|---|
| Company type | Public |
| Industry | Retail |
| Founded | September 1, 1970; 55 years ago (1970-09-01) |
| Founder | Cho Chang-gul |
| Headquarters | , South Korea |
Key people | Eugene Kim (CEO) |
| Products | Home appliances andfurniture |
| Revenue |  ₩2 trillion (2022)(US$1,530,000,000)[1] |
| – ₩83.4 billion (2022) | |
| – ₩71.3 billion (2022) | |
Number of employees | 2,215 (2022) |
| Website | mall |
Hanssem Co., Ltd. (Korean: 주식회사 한샘) is a South Korean corporation that designs and sellshome appliances andfurniture. Founded in 1970 by Cho Chang-gul, it is the largest home product brand in the country.[2] Itschief executive officer is Eugene Kim. Hanssem has been credited with introducing theWestern world'skitchen concept to South Korea.[3]
Traditional Korean kitchens were simpler than contemporary kitchens, typically only having asink and a flame to cook on. Hanssem was founded on September 1, 1970, by South Korean businessman Cho Chang-gul. The company introduced and commercialized the modern kitchen concept originating in theWestern world to South Korea, includingcabinets and appliances. The company was credited with pioneering the "stand-up kitchen" in the country, ashousewives typically had to crouch down to a lowbuttumak stove to cook.[3][4]
In May 2017, Hanssem acquired the Pantech building, a 22-story office building in theSangam-dong neighborhood ofSeoul. The company relocated its headquarters in theSeocho District and its design center in theJongno District to the building.[5]
In November 2019, Hanssem opened a 3,300-square-foot (310 square meter) flagship store in the southern Seoul neighborhood of Nonhyun-dong, an area with a high concentration of furniture stores. The store opened under the name of Hanssem Nexus, a company affiliate, and was advertised as retailingEuropean furniture imports.[6]
On July 12, 2023, Hanssemchief executive officer Kim Jin-tae was replaced by Eugene Kim, the former leader ofcosmetics company Able C&C. The decision to hire Eugene Kim was made amidst ongoing financial struggles that predated her predecessor's appointment to the job.[2]
In January 2017, a Hanssem employee alleged that she wassexually assaulted by three colleagues. In an online post, the employee claimed that one coworker had secretly photographed her in a bathroom in December 2016, another hadraped her in January 2017, and that ahuman resources manager had tried to rape her as well. The HR manager was accused of forcing the employee to remain silent about the incident and was ultimately fired before the scandal went public. Local authorities investigated the claim before forwarding the case to the Seoul Central District Prosecutor's Office in March, which closed the case without an indictment due to lack of evidence. The company's handling of the case caused controversy online.[7][8]
