Brannew-International: "Stroller Wagon Brand KEENZ with Enhanced Convenience and Safety"

There’s a saying in parenting: "Parenting is all about the layettes." The idea is that the right tools can make even the demanding task of raising children a bit easier. Among these tools, strollers have emerged as must-have items despite their price.

Brannew-International, a company that specializes in parenting products, has introduced a first-of-its-kind "stroller wagon" that combines the features of a traditional stroller with those of a wagon. A wagon, which is typically used for carrying goods or people, has been reimagined with a focus on parenting convenience.

The brand "KEENZ," launched by Brannew-International, offers products designed, developed, and produced in-house. With a focus on innovative designs, functionality, and competitive pricing, the company is working to position KEENZ as a rival to leading global stroller brands.

Kim Mi-jin, CEO of Brannew-International / Source: Brannew-International


Combining the Strengths of Strollers and Wagons
The inspiration for KEENZ came from CEO Mi-jin Kim's personal experience. While raising two children, she found traditional strollers inconvenient to use but couldn’t find a satisfactory alternative. She discovered wagons, which offered more space and convenience, but they were designed for camping or carrying cargo, making them unsuitable for small children.

Determined to develop her ideal stroller, she conducted extensive market research before establishing Brannew-International in 2015 and launching KEENZ. The company introduced Korea’s first stroller wagon, which was inspired by American garden wagons.

"Wagons are great for carrying items and are easy to fold, but they lack convenience features like safety belts and suspension systems," Kim explained. "By combining the strengths of a stroller with those of a wagon, we created a safer, more practical solution for children." She added, "KEENZ has also been responsible for developing other innovative products, such as the Transformer stroller."

KEENZ XCPlus wagon / Source: Brannew-International


Maintaining Design and Performance while Ensuring Competitive Pricing
KEENZ’s product lineup includes two main categories: KEENZ and LEBERE. "To appeal to consumers, we adopted designs that are aligned with the latest trends," Kim explained. KEENZ is based on an American-style box design with square frames, while LEBERE features a European-style curved frame. The brand offers not only wagons and strollers, but also a range of other baby products.

Kim emphasized that KEENZ's competitive pricing stems from its direct manufacturing process. "Over half of the strollers in Korea are obtained from overseas brands, and they are often sold at significantly higher prices domestically than in their home markets. Even our domestic brands frequently import pre-made products and simply rebrand them," she noted.

By contrast, "KEENZ is a technology-driven company, not just a distributor. We directly collaborate with our manufacturing facilities in China to develop molds and create designs that are tailored to our vision. By minimizing the distribution channels, we can offer our products at about 50% lower prices than those of international brands," Kim said.

KEENZ products meet the KC certification requirements for domestic sales, as well as having ASTM (American Society for Testing and Materials) and JPMA (Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association) certification for exports. The company also customizes its product designs to meet the needs of investors in different countries. Currently, KEENZ holds approximately 30 design patents and utility models.

KEENZ Air Pro / Source: Brannew-International


Active Exports and Rising Sales
KEENZ has expanded beyond Korea to play an active role in exports in the international market. After establishing its domestic entity in 2015, Brannew-International first introduced its stroller wagon to the US in 2017 through a local distributor. The brand’s reach has since grown across North America and Southeast Asia.

KEENZ has showcased its products at major international exhibitions, including CBME China, Kind + Jugend in Germany, and the ABC Kids Expo in Las Vegas. Next year, the company is planning to participate in baby product expos in Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand, and Europe.

These efforts have yielded positive results, with KEENZ recording a 20% growth rate compared to the previous year and achieving export sales of 5 billion KRW this year. "We are planning to launch new products next year and are negotiating for distributor agreements with overseas investors aimed at a European market entry later this year. With this momentum, we expect to surpass 10 billion KRW in export sales within two years," Kim said.

She credits the SBA’s support for KEENZ’s success in product development. "When exporting products or entering new markets, the analyzing patents of competitors is a critical step. The SBA’s intellectual property support program provided us with patent mapping services, helping us to identify trends and develop strategic patents. This allowed us to both speed up and stabilize our development process," Kim explained. She concluded, "Having worked hard to create KEENZ, we will continue developing innovative and safe parenting products."

by Yeji Kim (yj@itdonga.com)