Indians are no longer just watching K-serials, eating tteokbokki and gimbap, two well-known Korean dishes, or learning smattering of a new language for fun. In the past few years, and specifically in 2025, the sweep of the K-culture in urban homes has colluded with gadgets and appliances, apart from finance and businesses. Korean giants like LG and Samsung have become household names. A story of music, street food, skincare and fandom (Korean pop group, BTS, has millions of fans in the country) has coupled with boardroom strategies, valuation debates, and stock-market speculations.
This is where the much-debated and most-anticipated IPO (Initial Public Offering) of LG Electronics India fits in with the larger Korean puzzle. The major filed its draft prospectus in December 2024, and proposed to sell more than 100 million shares, or 15 per cent of the post-issue equity. Global volatility forced it to hold back. After months of recalibration, the IPO is expected to hit the market in October 2025, albeit in a scaled-down form. Reports suggest that what will be on offer may be closer to 10 per cent of the equity.
What separates the forthcoming IPO from the others is the cultural runway on which it stands, and on which it will land. India’s love for Korea is no longer fringe. Korean pop culture, serials and products are staples among the younger consumers. Even without a major K-pop group having toured to India recently, viewership of the Korean content, adoption of Korean beauty routines, and interest in Korean culinary experiences have surged.
This cultural affinity creates intangible brand equity. A young consumer who queues up for spicy rice cakes or follows K-pop fan-accounts into the night is likely to be more familiar with, and amenable to, the “look, feel, reliability” of LG’s TV and refrigerator. Brand trust, after-sales service and aspirational cues matter. In this sense, LG is possibly trying to leverage not just its two decades of presence in India, but newer layers of “K-connect.”
However, Chang-Tae Kim, CFO, LG Electronics, is candid about the IPO delay. Recently, he insisted that the company “will not be pressured to list immediately.” The date, as he stressed, depended on two factors: Market conditions that support “proper valuation,” and timing that generated “maximum synergy” from the IPO.
Analysts are reading the same tea leaves. A report by Smartkarma (Douglas Kim) estimated a base-case valuation of $14.7 billion for the company, but suggested that for the issue to excite investors, the figure needed to be lowered to $13 billion or less. Ked Global expects LG India to raise $1.8 billion, with a valuation of $13 billion. What remains consistent across reports is that the IPO will be an OFS (Offer for Sale) only, which implies that the Indian operations will not receive the proceeds, which will go to the parent entity. This raises the typical questions related to “parent-subsidiary risks.”
Smartkarma’s base-case valuation assumes optimistic projections for growth in home appliances, market shares in TV, ACs, washing machines, among others. The sentiment for large and expensive appliances remains positive before this festive quarter, thanks to the major GST cuts. LG India has also invested heavily in AI and its ecosystem, which gives it an edge in the premium segments, which are witnessing high growth rates due to consumers’ interest.
While LG does face stiff competition from its Korean rival, Samsung, the former seems to be doing better in the AC segment, and giving tough competition in other areas. So, LG’s standing in the Indian market remains solid, as it seeks to make the most of its strategic positioning, and escalate volume growth.
Kotak Securities’ review of the IPO emphasises how LG’s strength is not just in the premium product features but in its wide network, service infrastructure, and credibility that was built over years. These are similar traits that appeal to both culturally-aspirational, and financially-literate consumers. Products, brands and culture move together, although there may be the typical chicken-and-egg confusion: Which first captures the hearts and minds of the people in the new nations? Think of Hollywood, Pepsi and McDonald’s. Or look at India’s fascination with German and Japanese technology.
This is where the story gets more interesting. We realise that retail investors, whether in India or elsewhere, behave like buyers who believe in brands, fans who have faith in icons, and a generation that is obsessed with a foreign culture in a subconscious manner. Like the latter categories queue up online, and react emotionally to brand names, the investors show a herd mentality for some IPOs.
If LG’s IPO is priced well, i.e., aggressively and competitively, is backed by marketing, and succeeds in creating the same emotional pull that K-pop and K-serials fandom have, then there may be unusually-high retail participation. But unlike concert tickets, shares are financial instruments where other factors matter.
So, the major question is: Will those who love “gimbap and glow masks and weekend Korean dramas” pay attention to the IPO? Will they care about financial jargon such as PE multiples, RoE, EPS and dilution? LG seems to believe so. Its brand positioning, product quality and service reputation are being leveraged in conversations with potential investors, and messages in product ads. Obviously, the cultural connection, however ephemeral, will matter.
When LG finally lists, maybe this October as analysts expect, it will be both as one of India’s biggest IPOs in recent years, and a vivid case of culture’s conversion into capital. If the valuation aligns, market conditions calm, investor trust matches consumer trust, LG’s IPO may prove that the ongoing Korean wave of soft power is also a financial power, and hard manufacturing power.
In this context, the public issue will be more than a financial and stock market event, or mere numbers. It will be a cultural marker. It will provide cues to how companies can dip into cultural affinities and affiliations to achieve financial and operational successes.
