Our company, Hampton Grains, Inc. (Hampton), was started in 2008 by one individual, Dr. John Kwak (Heart). Since 2008, the company has been a service-oriented export trading company providing domestic and international companies the opportunity to import and export products to new and existing markets. Hampton started with sales of grain products such as wheat, corn, flour, soybeans, etc. and other food products such as produce, oils, and almonds. Dr. Kwak (Heart) built long-term relationships with valued customers and grew the company’s sales annually.
In 2009, Hampton grew to level where it was contracted by companies such as United Grains and Parrish & Heimbecker to ship entire vessel loads of wheat to major baking companies in Korea, such as SPC-Mildawon. Shipments were as large as 25,000-50,000 metric tons worth of various wheat varieties. In order to fulfill these shipments, Dr. Kwak (Heart) received charter contracts from major vessel companies such as Oldendorff Carriers and Pacific Basin.
Starting in 2013, Hampton’s revenue increased to around $70,000,000 so Dr. Kwak (Heart) expanded Hampton Grains’ market to include frozen tortillas and other Mexican food products such as guacamole, salsa, and nacho cheese sauce. This quickly became Hampton’s most successful and consistent business to this day.
In 2014, Dr. Kwak (Heart) was invited to South Korea by President Park to attend a presentation for Foodpolis, South Korea’s first national food cluster. Foodpolis serves as South Korea’s R&D and export-oriented industrial complex designed to be a central hub for the global food industry. At the event, Dr. Kwak (Heart) received an honorable award from South Korea’s Ministry of Agriculture.
In 2019, Dr. Kwak (Heart) then expanded the business to include online sales of dietary supplements – its main market base being on Coupang, Korea’s largest online sales platform. This branch of Hampton’s business is always growing and evolving to include new products. Hampton has even teamed up with local scientists and universities to develop nanoparticle sized supplements.
Currently, Hampton is developing a new business division that will research and develop AI-related products and services. This includes items such as quantum coding, cybersecurity, smart farms, and AI medical devices.
