[THE INVESTOR] Koo Bon-sung, vice chairman of LG Group’s catering unit Ourhome, has been appointed new chief executive of the company on June 20. 

Koo, the eldest son of the current chairman Koo Ja-hak, is the largest shareholder of the food company. However, it was only recently that the presumptive heir participated in the board meeting and took part in management. 

Up until last year, it was Bon-sung’s younger sister Koo Ji-eun, now CEO of Kalisco, who was named the likely heir of Ourhome as she was the only one from the Koo family who took part in management. However, she was dismissed from the vice president‘s post last July until she returned to the company in January. But in April, she was removed as the head of Kalisco, an affiliate of Our Home. 

Industry watchers say the reason why Ji-eun was outsted from the company is because she was in discord with some senior executives of the company.

Prior to joining Ourhome, Koo studied economics from Northwestern University in the US, worked at global banks and companies, including Helene Curtis Industries, Chase Manhattan Bank, LG Electronics and Samsung C&T. He also served as a researcher for Hosei University in Tokyo and executive of Samsung Economic Research Institute. 

The company said it chose Koo -- the largest shareholder -- as CEO to consolidate leadership in the market and make Ourhome a leading food company globally.

By Ahn Sung-mi (sahn@heraldcorp.com)