Creating Something New Based on 'Innovativeness' - Bluebird

When riding on a train, receiving parcels at a post office, doing grocery shopping at a supermarket or buying clothes at an SPA brand shop, we always see this item. It is none other than the payment terminal, which helps share information in real time and provides accurate and convenient services.

We met with CEO Lee Jang-won of Bluebird, the number one manufacturer of payment terminals in Korea and the third largest in the world, to learn about his company's past, present and future.

Bluebird CEO Lee Jang-won posing in front of Bluebird's key products / Photo by Editor Ham Hye-kang

Founded in 1995, Bluebird became the largest producer of payment terminals in Korea just five years after its establishment.

In 2005, it advanced into the overseas market, becoming the world's third largest producer of high-end mobile terminals by beating renowned global corporations with long histories and large market shares.

In recognition of its superb technologies, Bluebird supplies its products to many globally recognized corporations and organizations, including Prada, Zara, Pepsi Co., P&G, the U.S. Pentagon, the U.N. and Korea Post, etc.


Even though it entered the market later than many global corporations, Bluebird has been growing fast thanks to its "innovativeness," as CEO Lee Jang-won says. Rather than following the existing product lineup of its rivals, Bluebird grasps and develops products that the customers want.

CEO Lee and all the employees at Bluebird pay attention even to customers' jokes. "We take notes of everything that our clients say about our products, including their playful comments on the uses and difficulties of the products.

They become an important intellectual property that can help us develop the right products to satisfy our customers' needs." says CEO Lee.

Bluebird's signature product, RFR900 / Photo provided by Bluebird

Bluebird rapidly develops new products that have never existed before, rather than just modifying existing ones. It was the first in the world to develop all-in-one payment terminals featuring telecommunication functions, just like smart phones. It also found ways to reduce the size of payment terminals to half to make them more convenient to use.

Bluebird has built a direct transaction network with its global clients through innovation and product development reflecting their needs. Rather than just manufacturing products according to its clients' requests, the company collaborates with them to develop products that satisfy their needs. Its strong partnerships with clients and its global business network are the major factors behind Bluebird's growth potential.

Bluebird developed a product according to the client's needs when carrying out a transaction with SPA fashion brand Zara. It had developed and launched customized pocket-size RFID readers for Zara, which needed compact bar scanners that could accurately and swiftly read small tags.

CEO Lee aims to establish a presence in the United States and Europe in a bid to form partnerships with more global companies in new business fields. He plans to target the health care sector in the U.S. and the postal markets in Europe, including Österreichische Post (Austria Post), Deutsche Post (Germany Post) and Correos (Spain Post). “Our many employees' morale has surged since we had advanced into new business fields. We will further boost technological developments to maintain 100 billion won in sales" stated CEO Lee when speaking of Bluebird's ambitions.

By Editors Shin Jae-eun ([email protected]), Ham Hye-kang