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Honey butter chips book released

October 13, 2015

(Courtesy of Haitai Confectionery & Foods)

By The Korea Times Seoul staff

The success of Honey Butter Chips is the subject of a new book.

Thanks to the chips, Haitai, once the tailender of the potato chip market, has turned the tables.

“The secret of Honey Butter Chips” by Haitai Confectionery & Foods CEO Shin Jeong-hun, tells how the product may have missed securing market dominance because of initial conflicting opinions over it, the counterattack with similar products by rivals and the thoughts Shin had about building additional production facilities.

According to the confectionery firm, Shin was behind the success of the sweet-flavored potato chips, from product development to its name.

“The success DNA is an asset of Haitai, but I published a book about it and share it for the development of the domestic confectionery business,” Shin said.

Shin graduated from Seoul National University’s business administration department, earned an MBA degree and worked 10 years as head of Haitai. But the book’s message is not blindly to follow management theories.

According to Haitai, Shin is known to enjoy discussions with employees on books he designates every month. While they are mainly books on management, they also include comic books.

Honey Butter Chips became a huge hit late last year and the short supply created even greater demand. Extra production facilities are being built to increase supply.

However, it is uncertain how popular the book will be as the popularity of the potato chips has faded.