Whal Myung Su is the first western medicine in Korea invented by Min Byung-ho, a bureaucracy of Chosun dynasty, in order to popularize the secret of herb medicine available only in the palace in 1897 when Chosun transferred to the Korean Empire. At that time when only decocted medicines were taken in Korean society, Whal Myung Su gained public favor because it was harmonious with the taste and physical constitution of Korean people and worked wonders for digestive problems.

Dong Wha Yak Bang registered the trade mark 'Bu-chae' at the patent bureau in 1910 and made the framework as a modern pharmaceutical manufacturer by transforming itself to a corporation. With this as momentum, Whal Myung Su has grown rapidly. This growth accelerated after Chang-Sik Yoon was inaugurated as 5th president in 1937 and transformed the factory from manual work to a modern mass production system. At that time, annual sales increased to 5 million bottles and even people who had paid in advance could not buy owing to serious supply shortage. Dong Wha set up a branch office in Manchuria in 1938 and exported it to U.S. (especially Hawaii) and Manchuria.

In 1942 only Dong Wha among local manufacturers acquired a pharmaceutical business license from the Manchurian government. It marked an epoch in Korean enterprise history and became the momentum that expanded the market sphere of Whal Myung Su overseas.

Afterwards Whal Myung Su suffered through two ordeals. The partition of the Korean peninsula resulted in the loss of the North Korean market and of manufacturing facilities and the enormous market in Manchuria. To make matters worse, as the Korean War broke out in 1950, the main office in Seoul was totally destroyed and the production of Whal Myung Su had been suspended for the time being. In that state of disorder, many kinds of imitation products flowed into market, which was a serious threat to Whal Myung Su.

Before long Whal Myung Su reclaimed its original position thanks to positive and aggressive marketing and its widespread reputation in Korean society. Thereafter, Whal Myung Su (sparkling) in 1967 and Whal Myung Su Q (sparkling) in 1991 were launched to meet various consumer needs, which made the position of Whal Myung Su in the local digestive market stronger and more solid.

The oldest medicine in Korea, Whal Myung Su, more than 100 year old, is regarded as a marvelous drug which has transcended the ordinary product life cycle in the pharmaceutical industry where technologies are developed very swiftly, and will be recognized as a national pride forever in the future.