IRKOM Brief

With a history of more than 30 years, K-pop's global expansion has been limited largely to Southeast Asia, and even moreso to the markets of Japan and China, which are closer to South Korea. Against this backdrop, Big Hit (predecessor to HYBE), known for producing BTS, is not only entering the US and UK markets, home to pop music that was long impenetrable for Korean artists, but also growing as a global multi-label company with many artists who make it to the Billboard charts and the iTunes store in more than 100 countries every time they release a new song. With its recent purchases of various global labels, Big Hit is expected to continue to take on these challenges (This entire sentence could be deleted.). This is a case study that examines the management philosophy and directions behind the constant challenges and successes of Hybe Co., Ltd. as well as the problems and challenges yet to be resolved. To this end, we will explore their strategies in three phases of growth: 1) Big Hit, until BTS made it to the US Billboard Charts in 2017; 2) Hybe Corporation, which was reborn as a multi-label company with its initial public offering in 2020;, and 3) Hybe, recently establishing itself as a multinational company by actively acquiring major global labels in the U.S., Japan, and South America. Our research on the first phase focuses on Big Hit's strategy to create the famous BTS ARMY fandom. The study analyzes and seeks to understand the group’s success over the past decade and the longevity factors that have sustained their success. Of course, various reports, magazine columns, and even documentaries covering the global success of HYBE and BTS have already been released, and scholars at home and abroad are pouring out analyses and studies. Contrary to their analyses, however, Hybe CEO Bang Si-hyuk has repeatedly stated that he had never really considered going global. The theory of “serendipity,” or “inevitability disguised as coincidence,” is often mentioned in attempts to predict the success of venture companies or their case studies in recent years. we believe that it is a critical factor in understanding the success of Big Hit. When he was a middle school student, Bang Si-hyuk already had his finger on the pulse of weekly Billboard Hot 100 singers and producers. In the meantime, BTS member and genius RM was an underground rapper looking up to the American rapper Eminem at the age of 13. In 2010 when Bang’s passion found its way into RM’s dream, the serendipity factor for global success was completed. Of course, there are many other data and resources telling us how many other success factors Big Hit and BTS met before they found this serendipity. As an example, BTS chose not to embellish their culture but to let it be revealed naturally, which helped BTS tap into the common threads of human emotions and connect with the global music audience. It is one of the things that made BTS who they are today, which cannot be uncovered by looking only at the factors that we can see at the present time. This study also delves deep into Hybe’s organizational culture that has enabled its people to develop a unique approach to overcoming the diverse difficulties on the road to growth, make endless attempts and efforts, discover innovative methods for motivating creativity –which have not yet been fully explained – and develop their own philosophies regading larger ideas. Furthermore, considering the volatility of the entertainment industry where cultural and emotional aspects weigh heavily and fierce competition and constant noise are part of everyday life, it is particularly worth paying attention to HYBE's management methods. These specific cases will help us understand how Big Hit has continued to grow for more than 13 years since the days of managing only one group, BTS. The primary purpose of this study is to find and instantiate strategies (e.g., emotional and cultural factors) that can be shared with many Korean companies seeking global success. Moreover, this study presents more in-depth and diverse evidence for several factors such as continuous innovation, authenticity, and team chemistry, and attempts an integrated approach to examine them with a time-series/background analysis framework from multiple perspectives. In our study on the second-phase in particular, how HYBE, in its drive to becoming the first multi-label in Asia, will resolve its conflict with ADOR, a subsidiary to which the idol group NewJeans belongs, will be a very important topic for analysis within the time frame of this study. There is a stark difference in reaction to the ongoing dispute between the global fandom and Korean fans, but the conflict is not fundamentally different from the challenges that Hybe faced in its Big Hit days. Therefore, how this situation will play out will serve as a good example of how HYBE can prove its potential for sustainable success in the global market today. In conclusion, it is hoped that this study will help many companies seeking a foothold in the global market to discover and strengthen success factors – which they may already have – more quickly and more aggressively. We expect to produce results showing that there are lessons worth paying more attention to and referencing, particularly for companies engaged in businesses offering soft products and services that rely on human nature and culture, such as entertainment.