November 29, 2024

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Visitors tour exhibition booths set up at the Korea Industry Expo 2024, or KoINDEX 2024, which took place at the Yashobhoomi convention center in New Delhi, India, on Friday. (Park Hae-mook/ The Korea Herald)

NEW DELHI -- Indian employees at Korean conglomerates, including LG Electronics, Hyundai Motors and Orion, enthusiastically showcased their new technology and latest products at an industrial exhibition commemorating the 51st anniversary of diplomatic ties between Korea and India.

KoINDEX, with G-FAIR 2024, gathered more than 600 exhibitors with over 3,000 booths from India and Korea to create new business opportunities at the Yashobhoomi convention center in Delhi, India, from Nov. 21-23.

LG Electronics boasted the most prominent presence, positioned at the front of the exhibition hall for immediate exposure to attendees as they entered the trade show.

The Korean tech giant’s booth at KoINDEX featured premium home appliances aimed at India’s middle class, including its LG Signature OLED TVs, stackable washer-dryer WashTower, color-changing MoodUP refrigerator, and water purifiers.

“What Indian consumers want is to enjoy watching TV with family at home. Their rising demand for a home cinema experience meets what only LG OLED products can offer,” said Sunny Jha, a trainer at LG Electronics India while touring the booth.

Sitting on the other side of the booth was an LG CreateBoard, an interactive digital board that revolutionizes the way educators and students engage with technology in the classroom.

“Target consumers of CreateBoard are schools and institutions undergoing digital transformation as well as corporations using digital boards for meetings and presentations,” he said.

Hyundai Motor and Kia, Korea's leading automakers, showcased their electric and sport utility vehicles side by side at the exhibition hall.

Hyundai’s booth displayed the Ioniq 5, the brand’s only EV on sale in India; the Nexo, a hydrogen fuel-cell SUV; the Alcazar, a compact crossover SUV; and the Creta, a subcompact crossover SUV.

“Entering the Indian market in 1996, Hyundai now holds the second largest market share in India's passenger vehicle market with a share of around 15 percent,” said Kim Yeon-soo, an official of the carmaker. He added that Hyundai’s production capacity, which now stands at 800,000 units, will be increased to 1.1 million as it purchased General Motors's plant in Maharashtra in India last year.

At the Orion Booth, all of the products displayed by the Korean confectionery and snack maker were vegetarian.

It is not necessary for products to be vegetarian to hit shelves in the Indian market. “But we have seen that veg options sell more here than non-veg options because many Indians do not eat meat,” said Rahul Ravindran from Orion India.

According to a Pew Research Center survey, around 39 percent of the Indian population identifies as vegetarian.

Ravindran said the best-seller is the original Choco Pie. Orion’s signature snack tapped into countries as diverse as China, Vietnam and Russia by tailoring the product to suit each specific market. “Other flavors -- strawberry, coconut and more -- are equally popular,” Ravindran said.

Alongside the major Korean brands, a total of 280 firms exhibited 600 booths at the mega trade show to gauge business potential and tap into the fast-growing Indian economy.

The exhibition brought together companies and professionals representing construction, health tech, environmental technology, smart technology, safety and smart city solutions, Korean beauty, medical, and Korean food sectors. Each of these sectors presented the latest developments, enabling attendees to explore a wide range of innovative products and services.

“Their participation underscores the strength and the vibrancy of our growing partnership and reaffirms India as a preferred destination for Korean businesses,” said Siddhant Kaul, chairman of the Korea Council of the Confederation of Indian Industries, while delivering his opening remarks on Nov. 21.

The opening ceremony was attended by Kim Dae-ja, deputy minister for Trade & Investment at Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy; Kim Seong-jung, vice governor for administrative affairs of Gyeonggi-do and KINTEX CEO Lee Jae-yul.

Notable attendees from the Indian side included Srinivas Kondapalli, minister of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises; Gunjan Krishna, commissioner for Industrial Development and director of the Department of Industries & Commerce, Government of Karnataka; and Suruchi Mittar, chief industry officer at Invest India.

By Park Han-na (hnpark@heraldcorp.com) and Im Eun-byel (silverstar@heraldcorp.com)