“I’m serious about Paris”… Huh Jin-soo invited to French President Macron’s dinner

SPC Group President, the only domestic businessperson to attend…SIAL 60th Anniversary of the International Food Trade Fair

President Macron said, “Thank you to SPC for its contribution to the Korean-French economy and food culture exchange.”
SPC, from Paris Baguette branding to official sponsorship of Paris Saint-Germain… long relationship

Emmanuel Macron (right) and SPC Group CEO Huh Jin-soo are shaking hands at the presidential dinner held at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France on the evening of the 21st (French local time). (Photo courtesy of Elysee Palace (French Presidential Palace))”/>

▲French President Emmanuel Macron (right) and SPC Group CEO Huh Jin-soo are shaking hands at the presidential dinner held at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France on the evening of the 21st (French local time). (Photo courtesy of Elysee Palace (French Presidential Palace))

Heo Jin-soo, CEO of SPC Group, which operates Paris Baguette, recently visited the Elysee Palace in Paris to attend a dinner event for French President Emmanuel Macron. Since he was the only domestic businessman to be invited, attention is being paid to his background.

According to SPC Group on the 23rd, SPC President Huh Jin-soo attended President Macron’s invitation dinner held at the Elysee Palace on the evening of the 21st (local time) and met with President Macron. This dinner was prepared to commemorate the 60th anniversary of SIAL (Salon International de l’Alimentation), an international food trade fair held in Paris. About 40 leading food and distribution companies around the world, including SPAR (distribution) in the Netherlands, Marubeni (grain and trading) in Japan, and Savencia (dairy products), Limagrain (agriculture) and Eurial (dairy products) in France. people were invited. President Heo was the only Korean businessman.

President Macron reportedly invited the SPC to the event considering its active contribution to the economy and food culture exchange between Korea and France. President Macron, who shook hands with CEO Heo at the banquet hall, said, “I am grateful to SPC Group for keeping its promise to spread France’s excellent food ingredients and food culture to people in Korea and around the world, and to actively invest in and exchange with France.” said.

France and SPC have been inseparable for a long time. France is a country of gastronomy and is considered the ‘home of bread’ in the world. The fact that SPC, a leader in the domestic bakery market, operates the ‘Paris Baguette’ and ‘Paris Croissant’ brands modeled after the French capital Paris also shows the direction of the bakery that SPC is aiming for.

SPC founder and Chairman Heo Young-in has been growing the business in earnest since opening the first Paris Croissant store in Gubanpo, Seocho-gu, Seoul in 1986. SPC also operates six Paris Baguette stores throughout Paris (Châtelet, Saint-Michel, Boeldieu, Corol, Montparnasse, and Marechal Joao). La Défense, where Paris Baguette is located, is a modern commercial district on the outskirts of Paris, and Montparnasse is an office commercial district and core commercial district where major global companies reside. Here, a localization strategy is being used to sell French bread instead of Korean bread.

▲At the end of October last year, SPC Group President Huh Jin-soo and Paris Saint-Germain CRO (Chief Revenue Officer) Mark Armstrong signed an official sponsorship contract and took a commemorative photo at the Parc des Princes Stadium in Paris, France. (Photo provided by SPC Group)

SPC recently signed an official partnership with Paris Saint-Germain and is continuing its relationship with France through global sports marketing. In particular, Lee Kang-in, a South Korean national soccer player, plays for Saint-Germain. SPC is conducting collaborative marketing through various YouTube videos and events, including the selection of the top 5 Paris Baguette products selected by Lee Kang-in and other Saint-Germain players. In July of this year, it also participated as an official sponsor of the national team at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

An SPC official said, “This banquet was attended by many CEOs of leading food ingredient companies from France and around the world, making it a good opportunity to create a global network.” He added, “We will continue to supply quality raw materials from excellent companies to improve product quality and work with Paris Baguette.” “We will try to find various ways to cooperate in the overseas expansion project that is being developed,” he said.