[Edaily Reporter Kim Eung-tae] Since the beginning of the year, the performance gap between Cuckoo and Cuzen, the leading domestic rice cooker manufacturers, has been widening. Unlike Cuckoo, which saw an increase in home appliance sales in the first quarter of this year despite declining rice consumption, Cuzen’s sales have been falling. Analysts attribute this performance gap to the fact that while Cuckoo Holdings has diversified its home appliance product lineup beyond traditional rice cookers to include induction cooktops and food waste disposers, and expanded its sales channels into overseas markets, KuChen has remained focused on its traditional rice cooker-centric business.

According to the Financial Supervisory Service on the 3rd, #Cuckoo Holdings’ (including Cuckoo Electronics’ home appliance manufacturing results) consolidated revenue for the first quarter of this year was 232.7 billion won, a 3.8% increase from the previous year (224.2 billion won). During the same period, Cuchen’s revenue was 37.9 billion won, a 7.7% decrease from the previous year (40.8 billion won).
The contrasting performance of the two companies stemmed from the domestic market. Cuckoo Holdings’ domestic sales for the first quarter of this year were 186.6 billion won, a 4.4% increase from the previous year (178.4 billion won). In contrast, Cuzen’s domestic sales for the first quarter of this year were 36.6 billion won, a 7.8% decrease from the previous year (39.7 billion won).
While both companies faced a shrinking rice cooker market due to declining rice consumption, Cuckoo Holdings offset the slowdown in performance through business diversification, whereas Cuzen continued its rice cooker-centric business strategy, leading to these divergent results. Cuckoo Holdings’ first-quarter rice cooker sales this year were 165.6 billion won, a slight 0.8% decrease from the previous year (167.0 billion won). However, sales of other home appliances, such as dishwashers, food waste disposers, and induction cooktops, increased by 10.1% from 57.2 billion won to 63.0 billion won.
The expansion of sales channels into overseas markets is also cited as a factor contributing to the improved performance. Cuckoo Holdings’ first-quarter exports totaled 46.1 billion won, a 0.4% increase from the previous year (45.9 billion won). As Cuckoo Holdings has entered overseas markets such as China, Vietnam, Malaysia, the United States, and Australia, it is generating results by fully implementing localization strategies. The company explains that it is enhancing operational efficiency by localizing the same rice cooker products for each global market and boosting market competitiveness by incorporating local cooking method data. A Cuckoo Holdings official stated, “Rice cooker sales are increasing in Vietnam and China,” adding, “We are expanding our business by adding functions for menus preferred by local customers and increasing our lineup of reasonably priced products tailored to each country’s market.”
Cuchen is also turning its attention to overseas markets in response to slowing domestic demand for rice cookers and other home appliances, but the gap in export volume with Cuckoo Holdings remains significant. In the first quarter of this year, exports of home appliances, including rice cookers, reached 1.3 billion won, an 18.1% increase from the previous year (1.1 billion won); however, in absolute terms, the gap with Cuckoo Holdings remains substantial.
Cuchen, which has entered the Chinese and U.S. markets, unveiled plans last year to expand by establishing company-owned stores, but its business expansion has so far been limited to the online market, and progress appears to be slow. A Cuchen official stated, “Since our overseas business is still in its early stages, we are gradually expanding our operations with a focus on online sales,” adding, “We will continue to introduce products with excellent functionality and quality to spread Korean rice culture in the U.S. and Chinese markets.”