'hetras' Success Story Ssukssuk Company Exceeds 200 Billion Won in Corporate Value with Niche Fragrances

■ Captivating Consumers with Niche Fragrances Amid the 'Feelconomy' Trend

Recently, in the daily necessities market, the 'Feelconomy' trend, which values personal taste and emotional satisfaction over cost-effectiveness, has rapidly emerged. In this trend, popular daily necessities brands have also begun to pay attention to 'niche fragrances' that go beyond function to stimulate consumers' feelings and moods. The place that shows the most unrivaled presence in this era of fierce emotional competition is Ssukssuk Company, which operates the diffuser brand 'hetras'.

hetras has established itself as a leader in the K-fragrance market with a lineup of over 10 delicate niche fragrance diffusers, such as 'Flower Park' and 'Book Store', which evoke the atmosphere of specific spaces. Known as the 'Kyobo Book Centre diffuser' and securing high brand awareness among consumers, hetras is causing a sensation by ranking first in sales on major domestic e-commerce platforms such as Naver Shopping and Coupang.

■ Achieving a Quantum Leap Every Year... Overwhelming Earnings Growth and Product Diversification

Ssukssuk Company's growth is truly the epitome of 'explosive growth'. Established in 2021, Ssukssuk Company is operated with Kim Jong-gyu and Park Seo-jin each serving as CEO, maintaining stable control with CEO Kim Jong-gyu holding an 80% stake and CEO Park Seo-jin holding a 20% stake.

According to Pitchdeck's data, the performance indicators are at a phenomenal level. Performance, which was 2.8 billion won in revenue and 73 million won in operating profit in 2022, soared to 14 billion won in revenue and 3.4 billion won in operating profit in 2023. Subsequently, in 2024, it recorded 38.4 billion won in revenue and 9.8 billion won in operating profit, soaring vertically every year, and is targeting 60 billion won in revenue and 15 billion won in operating profit this year (2025). Based on this overwhelming surplus, it is estimated that they purchased a building for an office in 2023, and the number of employees also surged from 14 in December 2023 to 119 as of December 2025 in just two years.

Behind this rapid growth lies a solid profit structure. Due to the nature of diffusers, consumers must steadily purchase refill liquids, resulting in a very high repurchase rate. Based on this loyal customer base, Ssukssuk Company is successfully expanding its product lineup beyond diffusers to cosmetics and daily necessities in general, such as body, hand, and oral care, and lip essence. Looking at the recruitment job group data, it clearly shows a focus on product diversification, including cosmetics, import/export, and buyers.

■"A Must-Visit Course for Global Tourists"... Asian Exports Explode Riding the Popularity of K-Perfume

Now, Ssukssuk Company's gaze is directed beyond the domestic market toward the massive global market. At the forefront of this is the hetras flagship store located in Myeongdong, Seoul. The Myeongdong store has established itself as an attraction for global tourists to the extent that over 90% of all visitors are foreigners, regardless of weekdays or weekends. Customers of various nationalities, including China, the United States, Taiwan, and Japan, are visiting, and events such as a 'lip essence' giveaway targeting foreign customers are receiving a great response. Visitors who experience the fragrances firsthand in the store are creating a virtuous cycle leading to online repurchases upon returning to their home countries or collaboration proposals with local distributors.

Online export performance is also remarkable. According to 'Qoo10 Japan' operated by eBay Japan, the sales volume of K-perfumes in Japan this year exploded by 250% compared to the same period last year, and the demand for K-living products, such as diffusers and air fresheners, surged by more than 10 times. Among the Japanese Gen MZ who enjoy special fragrances, the 'hetras Premium Diffuser' is considered a leading player in the K-fragrance craze. Ssukssuk Company, which first started exporting last year and generated 1.6 billion won in overseas revenue, has already surpassed last year's annual overseas revenue in just the first quarter of this year. Currently, it is embarking on full-scale distribution network expansion through online sales channels in Northeast Asian regions such as China and Taiwan, as well as Japan.

■ Exceeding Corporate Value of 200 Billion Won... Emerging as the Biggest 'Catch' in the M&A Market

Coupled with such explosive growth and the premium of overseas expansion, Ssukssuk Company has recently emerged as the hottest property in the capital market and mergers and acquisitions (M&A) industry. While selecting Samil PwC as the lead manager for the sale and looking for a new owner, Tigris Investment, a new technology business finance company affiliated with Duksan Group, and Meritz Securities have set out to raise funds to acquire a 70% stake in Ssukssuk Company for 140 billion won.

They plan to raise 100 billion won through a project fund and 40 billion won through acquisition financing, and in this transaction, Ssukssuk Company's total corporate value was evaluated at a whopping approximately 200 billion won. Investment banking (IB) industry officials highly value the excellent management performance that Ssukssuk Company has achieved within a short period, and analyze that if a strategic investor (SI) who can supplement the company's somewhat lacking global network joins as the new owner, it will be able to perfectly leap forward as a global consumer goods company active on the world stage.