Ottogi heir joins family business in US

South Korean food company Ottogi family’s third-generation member Ham Yon-ji, 32, has recently joined Ottogi, after appearing in public for years as a musical actor and a YouTuber, according to industry sources Friday.

As the daughter of Ottogi Chairman Ham Young-joon, Ham officially joined Ottogi America, a US subsidiary of Ottogi, this month and is reportedly working in the marketing division following an internship at the company.

Ham graduated from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts and moved to Korea to build her career as a musical actor. Previously, she had been running a YouTube channel where she shared her daily life with fans and followers.

A few months before she halted all activities on her channel in December last year, she expressed through YouTube her desire to promote Korean food abroad professionally. Ham commented that she wanted to learn the field in Los Angeles, which she described as “the center of Korean food.”

With Ham joining Ottogi’s US subsidiary, the industry views that Ottogi’s global management efforts are expected to accelerate. Currently, Ham owns a 1.07 percent stake in Ottogi.

Meanwhile, Chairman Ham’s son, Ham Yoon-sik, joined Ottogi in 2021 and currently works in the management sector, while his son-in-law, Kim Jae-woo, who joined Ottogi in 2018, is currently on leave to study in the United States.

In November last year, the chairman hired his in-law Kim Kyung-ho, former vice president of LG Electronics, to head the global business division.