Sono Square

Sonosquare operates a B2B business built around its MRO division, established in 2009, supplying materials and operational solutions specialized for the hotel and resort industry.

Under its own 'GOOD&GOODS' brand, it runs in-resort retail stores and digital advertising services, alongside a rental business that provides mattress-centered living products through online and offline channels.

Its 'Sono Season' brand sells German-made premium memory foam mattresses, hotel bedding, and phytoncide deodorizers, distributed through showrooms, directly operated stores and agencies tied to Sono Hotels & Resorts.

Since 2012 the company has operated a seller-driven B2B e-commerce platform through its own e-procurement system, and it holds a total of 38 intellectual property rights to protect its brand and differentiate its products for hospitality clients.

The company participates as a main supplier on 'HotelPocket,' an integrated procurement platform for roughly 500 lodging operators centered on Hotel Story client accounts, covering food materials, room amenities, linens, and cleaning supplies.

In January 2026 it exhibited at the '2026 Hotel Fair,' presenting a 'one-stop total care solution' built on material-supply experience accumulated across 19 directly operated Sono Hotels & Resorts locations nationwide, integrating consulting, procurement and logistics.

Controlling shareholder Sono International, the group's holding entity, owns a 34.30% stake, while Sonosquare itself holds a 10% stake in group airline affiliate Trinity Airlines (formerly T'way Air), giving it a notable role within the group's governance structure.

A meaningful share of revenue is generated through related-party transactions, and as the group's only listed operating subsidiary, its governance was recently reinforced by the addition of Sono International Chairman Seo Jun-hyuk as a non-standing director.

Consolidated revenue in 2025 reached KRW 162.9 billion, up 22.0% from KRW 133.5 billion in 2024, while operating profit more than doubled to KRW 1.4 billion from KRW 0.66 billion. The operating margin edged up from 0.5% in 2024 to 0.9% in 2025, though it remains thin.

Net income, however, stayed negative at about KRW -2.7 billion in 2025, a much smaller loss than the KRW -10.4 billion net loss recorded in 2024.

On a quarterly basis, both Q2 2025 (revenue KRW 45.8 billion, operating profit KRW 1.3 billion, net income KRW 0.9 billion) and Q3 2025 (revenue KRW 49.1 billion, operating profit KRW 1.8 billion, net income KRW 0.5 billion) were profitable at both the operating and net levels.

From Q4 2025, however, revenue slipped to KRW 38.0 billion and the company swung to an operating loss of KRW 0.5 billion and a net loss of KRW 2.5 billion, and losses persisted and even widened through Q1 2026 (revenue KRW 34.2 billion, operating loss KRW 0.8 billion, net loss KRW 0.6 billion) and Q2 2026 (revenue KRW 39.1 billion, operating loss KRW 2.1 billion, net loss KRW 1.7 billion).

Cumulative net income across the trailing four quarters (Q3 2025-Q2 2026) came to about KRW -4.4 billion, reflecting a reversal from the profitable trend seen in the first half of 2025.

On the cash flow side, operating cash flow was KRW 8.0 billion in 2025, down from KRW 11.6 billion in 2024, but it remained positive, a clear improvement from the negative operating cash flows of KRW -0.2 billion in 2023 and KRW -24.0 billion in 2022.

On the balance sheet, shareholders' equity fell to KRW 75.1 billion in 2025 from KRW 100.8 billion in 2024 and KRW 114.5 billion in 2023, while the debt-to-equity ratio jumped from 45.8% in 2024 to 68.7% in 2025, indicating simultaneous equity erosion and rising liabilities.

Korea's tourism industry expects roughly 20 million foreign visitors in 2025, with the spread of K-culture pushing tourism toward more experience-oriented consumption.

Tourist accommodation industry revenue grew from KRW 3 trillion in 2021 to KRW 7.4 trillion in 2023, with rising 'hotcation' and wellness demand driving growth centered on service quality and operational efficiency.

Hotel occupancy, particularly in Seoul, has been rising steadily, which market participants say is reinforcing demand for stable supply of consumable materials such as room amenities, linens and cleaning supplies.

Against this backdrop, integrated B2B procurement channels for the lodging industry are emerging, and Sonosquare has positioned itself as a main supplier on the HotelPocket platform, which serves roughly 500 participating lodging operators, leveraging its hospitality-specific MRO expertise.

Competitively, the market is a mix of large general food and consumables distributors and hotel-specialized material suppliers, and Sonosquare differentiates itself using material-supply experience accumulated at directly operated Sono Hotels & Resorts properties within the group.

That said, the company's revenue scale remains relatively small within the broader group, and some observers view it as playing a supporting role relative to the group's airline and resort expansion strategy.

The company has said it intends to keep expanding consumable material supply in response to rising hotel occupancy, particularly in Seoul, leveraging its supplier status on the HotelPocket platform.

It promoted its one-stop total care solution at the '2026 Hotel Fair' in January 2026 and continues to use material-supply experience from 19 directly operated properties nationwide to pursue new client accounts.

At the group level, parent Sono International filed a preliminary listing review application with the Korea Exchange on June 26, 2026 for its third KOSPI listing attempt, with Mirae Asset Securities and Daishin Securities serving as joint lead underwriters.

Given that a KOSPI listing typically takes about four months from preliminary review filing to listing, whether the listing occurs within the year has become a focal point, and the market has estimated Sono International's valuation at around KRW 3 trillion, with some estimates reaching KRW 4 trillion.

However, because the parent already has three listed subsidiaries (Sonosquare, T'way Holdings and Trinity Airlines), this would be a first domestic case of a parent listing above already-listed subsidiaries, and whether regulators issue guidelines on duplicate listings could affect the listing timeline and the governance structure of affiliates including Sonosquare.

With Chairman Seo Jun-hyuk having joined Sonosquare's board, the company's strategic standing within the group could grow, and there has been discussion of possible expansion into Trinity Airlines-related business such as in-flight bedding.