PER, EPS, PBR and BPS are calculated in-house from the last 4 quarters (2025Q3–2026Q2) · Dividend yield is based on ₩500 per share · Prices as of the 2026-10-02 close
The Born Korea posted an annual operating loss in 2025 but has steadily narrowed its quarterly deficit through 2026, with North American expansion and a revived M&A agenda emerging as the next focal points.
In FY2025 consolidated revenue fell year over year to KRW 361.2 billion, with an operating loss of KRW 23.7 billion and an owner-attributable net loss of KRW 17.4 billion, the company's first annual loss since listing.
Quarterly operating losses narrowed from KRW 22.5 billion in 2Q25 to KRW 5.6 billion in 2Q26, though the company has now posted operating losses for five consecutive quarters.
CEO Baek Jong-won signed an MOU with Canada's Sunray Group for restaurant business cooperation and is pursuing a local sauce production facility in the US, making North American operations a key variable for a potential earnings turnaround.
The M&A plans announced at IPO were delayed amid owner-risk controversies; the company has declared 2026 a year to relaunch the effort, but no specific target has been finalized.
Owner-risk factors have not been fully resolved, as disputes over the company's rejection of franchisee mediation recommendations continue.
The Born Korea is a restaurant franchise company led by CEO Baek Jong-won, operating a multi-brand portfolio including Hong Kong Banjeom, Paik's Coffee, Saemaeul Sikdang and Rolling Pasta, with franchising as its core growth engine.
Beyond the franchise business, the company has diversified into hotel operations in Jeju, home-shopping and online distribution, and ready-meal (RMR) products leveraging its brand intellectual property.
More recently, it has pushed a transition toward becoming a comprehensive food company by expanding B2B sauce supply contracts overseas under its 'TBK Sauce' lineup targeting foreign food and distribution firms.
Production relies partly on in-house lines in Yesan and Baekseok and partly on outsourced (OEM) manufacturing, a structure designed to support top-line growth without heavy capital investment.
The company has also signed an MOU with the Ministry of National Defense for a military catering consulting pilot program as part of its B2B distribution push.
Its competitive set is often compared with listed domestic peers such as Kyochon F&B and Shinsegae Food, while its business model differs from global scale players such as McDonald's and Yum! Brands.
Overseas expansion runs on two tracks: store rollout through master-franchise arrangements and local distribution of TBK sauce, with cooperation deals expanding in Canada, the US, Thailand and Taiwan.
Domestically, the company is pursuing franchisee support programs, new app activation and brand rebranding to recover store-level sales, while also reviewing new ventures such as a kitchen-automation B2B platform.
| Quarter | Revenue | Operating profit | Op. margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025Q2 | ₩74.2B | -₩22.5B | −30.3% |
| 2025Q3 | ₩87.4B | -₩4.4B | −5.0% |
| 2025Q4 | ₩89B | -₩3B | −3.4% |
| 2026Q1 | ₩79.6B | -₩4.2B | −5.3% |
| 2026Q2 | ₩83.2B | -₩5.6B | −6.7% |
| Year | Revenue | Operating profit | Net income (parent) | Op. margin | ROE | Debt-to-equity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | ₩410.7B | ₩25.6B | ₩20.9B | 6.2% | 15.8% | 57.0% |
| 2024 | ₩464.2B | ₩36B | ₩31B | 7.8% | 11.6% | 31.8% |
| 2025 | ₩361.2B | -₩23.7B | -₩17.4B | −6.6% | −7.1% | 23.3% |
Consolidated basis (financial statements including subsidiaries) · Final figures from DART filings · Net income attributable to owners of the parent · Data as of 2026-09-04
FY2025 consolidated revenue came to KRW 361.2 billion, down from KRW 464.2 billion in FY2024, while operating profit swung to a loss of KRW 23.7 billion from a profit of KRW 36.0 billion the prior year.
Owner-attributable net income also flipped to a loss of KRW 17.4 billion, a reversal from profits of KRW 31.0 billion in 2024 and KRW 20.9 billion in 2023.
The operating margin improved from 6.2% in 2023 to 7.8% in 2024 before deteriorating sharply to -6.6% in 2025, and operating cash flow reversed from an inflow of KRW 45.9 billion in 2024 to an outflow of KRW 29.0 billion in 2025.
On a quarterly basis, the deepest losses occurred in 2Q25 with revenue of KRW 74.2 billion, an operating loss of KRW 22.5 billion and a net loss of KRW 23.8 billion, before losses progressively narrowed to KRW 4.4 billion in 3Q25 (on revenue of KRW 87.4 billion) and KRW 3.0 billion in 4Q25 (on revenue of KRW 89.0 billion).
Notably, 4Q25 saw owner-attributable net income turn positive at KRW 2.7 billion despite the operating loss, a pattern consistent with non-operating items affecting the bottom line.
In 2026, the company posted an operating loss of KRW 4.2 billion on revenue of KRW 79.6 billion in 1Q and an operating loss of KRW 5.6 billion on revenue of KRW 83.2 billion in 2Q, with revenue up about 12% year over year even as the operating loss widened slightly.
Over the trailing four quarters (3Q25-2Q26), cumulative owner-attributable net loss totaled roughly KRW 6.6 billion, meaning the company remains in a loss position on an annualized basis.
Management attributed the 2025 deterioration mainly to roughly KRW 30 billion in franchisee support payments and weaker store-level sales amid a prolonged restaurant industry downturn, while noting that 2026 losses narrowed on a base-effect from the prior year's support spending, even as continued investment in overseas and distribution businesses and promotional costs kept the company from returning to profitability.
South Korea's restaurant market is expected to continue a low-growth, structurally reshaping trajectory in 2026, with combined estimates from Statistics Korea and the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs putting market size at roughly KRW 110-115 trillion.
Consumers are dining out less frequently but spending similarly per visit, shifting the industry's growth driver from visit frequency toward per-transaction value and structural change.
Fair Trade Commission franchise statistics point to continued consolidation toward franchising with a pronounced tilt toward mid-to-large brands, a shift that could favor large multi-brand operators such as The Born Korea.
At the same time, weaker consumer sentiment amid high prices and a weak currency is pressuring franchisee sales and closure rates, and tensions persist over profit-sharing between franchisors and franchisees, including delivery-app fee disputes and the spread of dual pricing.
Listed peers such as Kyochon F&B and Shinsegae Food face similar industry headwinds, but The Born Korea differentiates itself through its multi-brand strategy and sauce-based B2B business.
Overseas, the company is pursuing a two-track approach of master-franchise store expansion and sauce exports to address domestic market saturation, in line with a broader trend of overseas expansion across Korea's franchise industry.
The company has declared 2026 the founding year for its transition into a global comprehensive food company, positioning overseas expansion and a relaunched M&A push as core strategies.
In Canada, it is starting with converting Sunray Group stores in the Greater Toronto Area into The Born Korea brands under their MOU, while reviewing further brand rollouts into Sunray's hotel and commercial properties and expanding local distribution of TBK sauce.
In the US, the company is building a local production facility starting with sweet-and-sour pork sauce, aiming to cut logistics costs and lead times while supporting North American store and distribution expansion, and is also reviewing joint HMR development targeting local consumers.
On M&A, the company has said it is reviewing candidates including sauce manufacturing facilities, restaurant operators with their own brands, and food-tech companies with kitchen automation solutions, though no specific target has been finalized.
Domestically, it plans to pursue store-sales recovery through franchisee support programs, brand rebranding and new app activation, alongside new ventures such as a kitchen-solutions B2B platform and catering business.
Given that the Canada and US operations remain at an early stage, translating them into meaningful revenue growth and profitability improvement is likely to take time, and whether the long-delayed M&A plan can actually deliver results is seen as a key variable for any earnings rebound.
The Born Korea appears to trade at a level close to its net asset value, a marked step down from the elevated valuation seen shortly after listing.
On the earnings side, the company moved from a profitable run in 2023-2024 to a loss in 2025, followed by a pattern of progressively narrowing quarterly losses through 2026, leaving a full return to profitability as the key variable for any valuation reassessment.
On dividends, the company's continuation of cash dividends even during loss-making periods could be read as consistency in shareholder returns, though it has also drawn criticism for a mismatch between earnings direction and dividend policy.
The debt ratio has actually improved, falling from 57.0% in 2023 to 23.3% in 2025, even as operating cash flow turned to a net outflow in 2025, a point warranting attention on cash-generation capacity.
With both the overseas business and the M&A plan still at an early stage, any re-rating by the market is likely to hinge on how concretely these initiatives translate into actual revenue and profit.
PER, EPS, PBR and BPS are all calculated in-house (the same method as Naver and Toss) · Dividend yield = cash dividend per share from DART filings (supplemented by KRX) ÷ current price · As of 2026-09-04
Operating losses have narrowed from KRW 22.5 billion in 2Q25 to KRW 5.6 billion in 2Q26. While much of this reflects a base-effect from the prior year's one-off franchisee support spending, management maintains that profitability is also improving under normal operating conditions. Revenue also rose about 12% year over year in 2Q26, signaling a degree of top-line recovery.
Through the MOU with Canada's Sunray Group, the company secured its first case of converting Greater Toronto Area stores into its own brands, while pursuing a local sauce production facility in the US. This reflects an attempt to bypass domestic market saturation via master-franchising and B2B sauce distribution. However, being at an early stage, the actual revenue contribution has yet to be confirmed.
The debt ratio has fallen from 57.0% in 2023 to 23.3% in 2025, indicating improved balance-sheet stability even during the loss-making phase.
This shows the company has avoided excessive leverage while operating through the downturn, which could provide relatively favorable conditions for funding future M&A or investment needs.
The company has posted operating losses for five consecutive quarters from 2Q25 through 2Q26. While the loss size has shrunk, a full return to profitability has not yet been achieved. If the restaurant industry downturn persists, the pace of loss reduction could slow again.
Although the company said at its IPO that most of the proceeds would go toward M&A, the plan stalled amid owner-risk controversies, and despite declaring a relaunch in 2026, no specific acquisition target has been finalized. Critics note the capital has yet to be converted into an actual growth driver.
Civic groups have strongly criticized the company for twice rejecting mediation recommendations sought by Yeondon Bolkatz franchisees.
People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy has argued that between 2010 and 2023, franchisor revenue grew ninefold while average franchisee sales fell by 56%, raising structural concerns. Such disputes could weigh on brand trust and the recruitment of new franchisees.
The business remains heavily reliant on CEO Baek Jong-won's personal recognition, meaning any recurrence of personal controversy could directly affect the stock and earnings.
In the past, quality controversies over the Paikham ham product, alleged farmland-law violations and alleged food labeling law violations led to roughly 160 complaints and reports. Most were closed without findings of wrongdoing, but the possibility of similar issues recurring cannot be entirely ruled out.
In April 2026, the company was fined KRW 25.69 million after being found to have sold 'Bonga Sogalbijjim' product past its consumption date. Any recurrence of food-safety or labeling regulation violations could negatively affect brand trust and sales.
Given the multi-brand, multi-store structure, maintaining consistent quality control remains an ongoing challenge.
The Canada and US operations are still at the MOU-signing and initial production-facility stage, and there is a risk that actual store conversions or local production may not proceed as planned.
Country-specific regulations, such as US restrictions on importing Korean-origin meat, and uncertainty over local consumer reception are additional variables. If overseas revenue targets are not met, the cost of new business investment could remain a drag on profitability.
Expected timing of the 3Q26 earnings disclosure; watch whether the operating loss narrows further and whether revenue growth continues.
Check whether the store conversion with Canada's Sunray Group and the launch of the US local sauce production facility actually proceed, and whether they begin contributing to revenue.
Watch for disclosure of a specific, finalized acquisition target and deal size among the sauce manufacturing, restaurant, or food-tech candidates the company has said it is reviewing.
Monitor any additional company response or legal proceedings related to the Yeondon Bolkatz franchisee dispute and the rejection of the National Assembly Eulji-ro Committee's mediation recommendation.
The Born Korea recorded its first annual operating loss since listing in FY2025, but has shown a pattern of progressively narrowing quarterly losses through 2026.
This appears to reflect both a base-effect from the prior year's one-off franchisee support spending and some improvement in profit and loss under normal operations, though a full return to profitability has not yet been confirmed.
Expansion into North America, centered on Canada and the US, along with the relaunch of long-delayed M&A plans, represent the core of the company's forward growth story, but both remain at an early stage and will need time to translate into concrete results.
On the balance sheet, stability has improved with a lower debt ratio, though the shift of operating cash flow into a net outflow warrants attention. Owner-risk and franchisee-relations issues are seen as having eased considerably but have not been fully resolved, and the possibility of renewed controversy remains.
Ultimately, the next quarterly results, the actual revenue contribution from overseas operations, and whether a specific M&A target is finalized will likely be the key points to watch going forward.
Report written 2026-09-05 · Data as of 2026-09-04
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