November 28, 2024

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From left: Paris Baguette North America Chief Strategy Officer Hur Jin-soo, New York City Mayor Eric Adams and Chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea James Kim pose for a picture at a signing ceremony of their new partnership held in New York, Wednesday. (SPC Group)

South Korean food and bakery giant SPC Group said Friday it has joined hands with the city government of New York and the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea to boost the US city’s economy by expanding support for minority groups.

A signing ceremony for the memorandum of understanding was held in New York on Wednesday, with Mayor Eric Adams, AmCham Chairman James Kim and Paris Baguette North America Chief Strategy Officer Hur Jin-soo in attendance.

Under the agreement, SPC will run a six-week internship training program at Paris Baguette branches in New York, where interns can receive hands-on training and classroom instruction on baking.

As part of the partnership, SPC also plans to expand support for businesses owned by minority groups in cooperation with New York-based firms and AmCham member companies.

“New York is a big city of small businesses, and we want to make sure we are supporting everyone who wants to invest in our city, including our international companies,” said New York City Mayor Adams.

“This agreement with Paris Baguette will help create jobs and opportunity throughout the five boroughs, support the creation of youth internships that will build career skills and job readiness,” the mayor added.

About the latest partnership, SPC’s Hur also noted, “Through this partnership with New York City and AmCham to support women and minorities, we’re furthering our commitment to creating opportunities that strengthen our economy and support future business leaders.”

In addition to its business support, SPC has pledged to donate food to economically disadvantaged communities across the five boroughs.

“I strongly believe that this signing ceremony is a symbol of the incredible synergy between the US and Korea, a true win-win-win partnership and picture-perfect scenario for championing numerous collaboration efforts among the three parties,” said Kim, the AmCham chairman.

SPC is currently operating some 130 Paris Baguette stores across the US. In New York alone, there are about 30 outlets. The company aims to elevate the number of Paris Baguette stores in North America overall to 1,000 by 2030.

By Shim Woo-hyun (ws@heraldcorp.com)