Kim Jae-cheol, honorary chairman (90) and founder of Dongwon Group and Korea Investment Holdings, said on the 23rd, "In the poem 'Youth' by American businessman and poet Samuel Ullman, there is a line that states, 'Youth is not a time of life; it is a state of mind.' In that sense, I believe that being young means always thinking about and challenging new and unconventional ideas."
Honorary Chairman Kim noted this shortly after his lecture for the release of his management essay 'How to Overcome the Waves of Life' on that day.
He also said, "I am still dreaming about creating a 'sea ranch' by emitting low frequencies that fish dislike to build a 'wall' that fish cannot cross, so that I don’t need to go out to the open sea on distant fishing boats to operate."
Honorary Chairman Kim is a first-generation entrepreneur in South Korea who founded Dongwon Industries in 1969. After graduating from agricultural high school, he dreamed of attending the College of Agriculture at Seoul National University, but he decided to seek a new path at sea and became an unpaid trainee navigator on a deep-sea fishing vessel.
Continuing to pursue a challenging life, Honorary Chairman Kim moved from navigator to captain, to director general of a fisheries company, and then to an executive. He particularly expanded his businesses beyond the marine fisheries sector to include food, packaging materials, logistics, and finance, building Dongwon Group and Korea Investment Holdings. He is currently retired from management and focusing on research and development (R&D) and nurturing talent in the field of artificial intelligence (AI), having donated 544 billion won to KAIST.
Honorary Chairman Kim also explained the 'land-based salmon farming project' that Dongwon Group is pursuing. This project involves drawing deep seawater from 3.2 km off the East Sea and raising cold-water salmon on land using pipes.
He stated, "We wanted to collaborate with the salmon farming specialist company in Norway, 'Salmon Evolution', to advance the project, but it has stalled as the government’s environmental impact assessment has exceeded three years." He added, "Since this project requires an investment of over 300 billion won, government support is essential. The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries is strongly pushing this project. Following this, we expect budget approval to be reviewed through the preliminary feasibility assessment by the Ministry of Economy and Finance."
Honorary Chairman Kim shared his thoughts on the current issues facing Dongwon Group. Regarding the recent controversy over the delisting of Dongwon F&B, he explained, "All processes were the result of practical reviews."
Regarding the upcoming presidential election on June 3, Honorary Chairman Kim remarked, "I have no particular political views," but added, "It is not the case that specific politicians or parties can manage the economy. In a liberal economic system, the market must be entrusted to corporations so that human creativity can be fully unleashed and the principles of competition can operate, allowing society to progress."
When asked about the appropriate timing for 'quickly giving up,' which he mentioned in his management essay, he responded, "It’s difficult to determine a uniform point for giving up, but if a challenge threatens to shake the corporation due to failure, it should be avoided. However, sunk costs must be decisively abandoned. To grasp something new, one must let go of what they have previously held."