SevenBrew built a hit beer on a borrowed brand — when the licence ended, it had nothing

곰표 (Gompyo, the 'bear brand') is a long-established flour brand owned by Daehan Flour Mill (대한제분) in South Korea. From 2018 Daehan licensed the name to other products as a collaboration strategy. In 2019 it moved into beer, choosing the craft brewer SevenBrew (세븐브로이) as its manufacturer; SevenBrew handled the planning, development and production, and in 2020 the two launched 곰표밀맥주 (Gompyo Wheat Beer) under a trademark-licence contract.

The beer was a hit, and it became almost the whole of SevenBrew's business: at its peak 곰표밀맥주 accounted for about 97% of the company's revenue. Confident in the partnership, SevenBrew invested heavily — in 2022 it spent ₩30 billion building a new brewery in Iksan, billed as the country's largest beer factory. The brand equity, however, sat with 곰표, not with SevenBrew: customers were buying the bear, not the brewer.

In February 2023 Daehan chose not to renew, appointing Jeju Beer as the new manufacturer. Without its top product, SevenBrew's finances fell apart: 2024 revenue was ₩8.4 billion, down about 32% from ₩12 billion the year before, and its operating loss widened to ₩9 billion. In May 2025 it applied for corporate rehabilitation. A bitter three-year dispute followed — SevenBrew alleged abrupt termination and a stolen recipe; Daehan blamed SevenBrew's reckless investment and a softening market — before they settled through government mediation. Daehan then left the beer business entirely.