Designer bathtub supply begins for Sun Kim Land’s 1,350-unit premium apartment complex in Vietnam

Building its own factory in Myanmar; targets entry into the European market and KRW 10 billion in exports within five years

At a time when Korean bathroom manufacturers post only modest overseas export results, bathroom company Saturnbath Co., Ltd. (CEO Jung In-hwan) is establishing its standing as a full-fledged exporter, supplying its designer bathtubs in large volumes to a premium apartment complex being built in Vietnam.

Saturnbath recently announced that it has completed delivery of the bathtubs to be installed in the first-phase units of ‘The Metropole,’ a total of 1,350 units commissioned by Sun Kim Land, Vietnam’s top luxury apartment developer. Sun Kim Land’s ‘The Metropole’ is located in Thu Thiem, an area set to become the premier central district of Ho Chi Minh City. It is a large-scale project zone—dubbed the Shanghai of China—where major builders such as GS E&C and Lotte E&C are also actively running construction sites.

Saturnbath’s supply contract for ‘The Metropole’ came about when Sun Kim Land, having first recognized Saturnbath’s design and technical prowess, reached out with a love call. Because the bathtubs were destined for a high-end apartment complex, Sun Kim Land had been devoting great care to product selection; according to the story behind the deal, a Sun Kim Land official discovered Saturnbath’s bathtubs while touring premium-brand apartments in Korea, then visited the company’s headquarters in person to proceed with the contract. Saturnbath combines Korea’s largest bathroom production facilities with 30 years of know-how, and its LAR (liquid acrylic) bathtub material—a top-grade material used by luxury bathtub brands in Italy, Spain and elsewhere—is regarded as more than a match for high-priced imported bathtubs.

Saturnbath plans to supply its diverse range of designer bathtubs to all units of ‘The Metropole’ over a total of three phases through 2022, and the export achievement is expected to reach approximately KRW 3 billion. The bathtubs delivered in the first phase are the ‘Assem Collection’ by designer Song Seung-yong, winner of the Gold Award at the ‘2020 iF Award,’ one of the world’s foremost design awards. The Assem Collection is a collaboration between Saturnbath and artist Song Seung-yong—drawing attention in Europe for his distinctive ideas rooted in the beauty of nature as it is. It is a new modular bathroom collection that creates varied expressions of the object depending on the user’s choices and arrangement through combinations of different parts.

Saturnbath’s second phase of supply for ‘The Metropole’ will proceed in the first half of next year with the ‘Saturnbath TV Bathtub’ designed by world-renowned designer Karim Rashid, while the third phase will supply the ‘SBL1601 (Oval) Bathtub’ in the latter half of next year. The ‘TV Bathtub,’ which lets users enjoy entertainment at the same time, and the ‘SBL1601 (Oval) Bathtub,’ characterized by its graceful curves, are freestanding products that have been featured in leading TV dramas and films.

Saturnbath CEO Jung In-hwan explained, “We have collaborated with world-class designers and, under the motto that ‘design competitiveness is export competitiveness,’ became the first company in Korea’s bathroom sector to win the Gold Award at the ‘iF Design Award,’ among other achievements,” adding, “Starting with exports to Vietnam’s ‘The Metropole,’ we will expand our export markets by targeting hotels, luxury residences and villas in Vietnam, Thailand and beyond.”

Beyond the supply to Vietnam’s ‘The Metropole,’ Saturnbath is currently holding active export consultations via video conference with companies in Middle Eastern regions such as Saudi Arabia and Dubai, with the enthusiastic support of KOTRA, which has given a positive assessment of Saturnbath’s export potential.

In particular, to respond stably to rising overseas export volumes, the company recently established a joint venture in Myanmar and is building its own factory there. From 2021, when the factory is completed, Saturnbath plans to supply bathtubs that rival the world’s best with flawless technology and production lines, and to devote its full efforts to overseas export sales with the goal of entering the European market and reaching KRW 10 billion in exports within five years.

Meanwhile, consumer preference for Saturnbath’s premium bathtubs continues in the domestic market as well. Saturnbath’s high-end bathtubs have been adopted for the interior optional-product event running from October 16 to November 7 at ‘The H Firstier IPARK (6,702 units),’ the reconstruction apartment of Gangnam’s Gaepo Jugong Complex 1, drawing attention. At this event, Saturnbath is presenting the LAR rectangular bathtub, the air-pool bathtub and the freestanding oval bathtub—the same models unveiled through the sponsorship of the film ‘Parasite’—and hopes that, through this opportunity, it will not only showcase Saturnbath’s products and technology but also meet the satisfaction of prospective residents.

Saturnbath’s premium bathtubs have been supplied to a wide range of settings, including top-tier hotels at home and abroad such as Hyundai Seamarq Hotel, Paradise Hotel Yeongjongdo, Walkerhill Hotel and Andaz Hotel, as well as Incheon International Airport and luxury villas. They also drew attention when featured in the Academy Award four-time winner ‘Parasite,’ where the premium bathtubs appeared set like works of art. Tel: 02-3416-1400

The ‘Assem Collection,’ winner of the Gold Award at the iF Design Award, is a series of newly designed modular bathroom products that enable varied expressions of the object through combinations of different elements. Designer Song Seung-yong presented the design value of the Assem Collection under the theme of embracing and blending into every space.

The ‘TV Bathtub,’ which lets you enjoy entertainment at the same time


‘RIO’ (1401)

‘CIELO’ (SBL-1501) air-pool bathtub. Equipped with a pump from Germany’s KOLLER, which supplies only Europe’s finest luxury products, this air-pool bathtub delivers only AIR into the piping, eliminating the microbial growth and odor caused by residual water in conventional whirlpool piping. It offers a variety of healing functions, including a wave-pool function, negative-ion generation, and air-jet massage.


‘ORBIS’ (SBL-2185)


Round bathtub ‘FERRY’ (SBL-1601)