SPC Group Chairman Hur Young-in

By Kim Jae-heun

SPC Group Chairman Hur Young-in attended the "Choose France" event held by the French government in Paris, Monday (local time), the company said, Tuesday. The French government has been hosting the annual event since 2018 to attract more investments from global companies.

French President Emmanuel Macron and French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne attended the ceremony along with other government officials to welcome guests from some 250 global companies such as Coca-Cola, Disney and FedEx.

It is the second time that the French government invited SPC Group to Choose France after the first in 2018. The food firm is the first Korean company to join the event twice.

There, Hur discussed ways to invest in the food business in the European country.

SPC Group is currently working on establishing a production facility in France and plans to expand its Paris Baguette bakery business there. The Korean firm also acquired French sandwich and salad restaurant chain, Lina's, in June of this year.

"France is an important market for the company as it plans to actively carry out global business in Europe based in France," an SPC Group official said.

SPC Group entered the French market in 2014 by opening its first Paris Baguette bakery, where it has been offering Korean-style bakery products. It also collaborates with the Institut National de la Boulangerie Patisserie and Ecole Lenotre to introduce their curricula into Korean bakery institutes.