This article was published on March 28, 2025, at 2:56 p.m. on the ChosunBiz MoneyMove site.
The leading company in the domestic unmanned ordering machine market, t’order, is pushing for a sale of its management rights.
According to investment banking (IB) sources on the 28th, t’order recently decided to sell its management equity and has begun seeking potential buyers. Domestic private equity fund (PEF) management firms are initially being tapped for interest.
The sale target is said to be more than 50% of the management equity held by founder and CEO Kwon Seong-taek. As of the end of last year, Kwon was the largest shareholder with a 71.3% stake in t’order.
t’order, established in 2019, operates a first-generation table order service allowing customers to view menus and place orders and payments using tablets in restaurants.
With the integration technology of the point of sale (POS) system and a zero (0) commission policy excluding monthly fees for tablets, t’order has gained popularity among restaurant owners and has grown into the number one table order company in the country.
Recently, the company is expanding in response to the demand for reduced labor costs and improved restaurant operation efficiency. Last year’s consolidated revenue reached 58.7 billion won, a nearly 78% increase from 33 billion won the previous year.
However, last year’s operating profit decreased slightly from 8.9 billion won in 2023 to 8.6 billion won. The sharp increase in operating expenses, which exceeded 50 billion won last year, significantly impacted this.
t’order has recently begun to actively pursue overseas market expansion, including into the United States and Canada, and is reportedly considering the sale of management rights to PEF management firms to advance its business.
The sale price is expected to exceed 300 billion won based on the total equity value. Last May, when t’order attracted Series B investment from LB Investment and others, it was valued at 300 billion won.
Meanwhile, t’order noted that “it is true that various collaboration proposals have been received from PEF management firms,” but added, “We are not at a stage where we are specifically pushing for a sale of management rights.”