A new big brand

Here’s this week’s tip on Korean language and customs:

Q:
I saw that a large convenient store called LG25 in my neighborhood became GS overnight. As it turns out, the entire convenient store chain as well as the LG Home Shopping channel on the Internet and TV and the formerly blue-green colored gas stations have changed to GS. What does the new brand stand for? And what happened to the LG company?

A:
LG started as Lucky Goldstar, one of Korea’s family-run conglomerates, or chaebol. The industrial group, founded by two Korean families, Koo and Hur in 1947, quickly rose to become one of the country’s leading companies. Today, the group consists of more than 30 affiliated companies worldwide.

GS Holdings Corporation recently split from LG Group. While the Koo family maintains the original LG Group, the Hur family took up GS Holdings, whose major operations are divided into chemicals, construction, electronics, telecommunication, services and retail. Thus, all retail stores, including home shopping, convenience stores and book stores, that used to be operated under the LG logo are now GS.

The company announced that the new name, GS, was derived from “Goldstar,” but it stands for “Good Service, Great Satisfaction.”