Suncheon City Launches 'Suncheon-style Startup Ecosystem' Centered on a Single Idea for Entrepreneurship

Startup Ecosystem = Entrepreneurs + Startup Support Organizations + Accelerators + Investors + Startup Culture

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Hyung-kwon] Suncheon City, Jeollanam-do announced on the 27th that it will actively promote the creation of a ‘Suncheon-type startup ecosystem’ to become a successful startup city with just one idea.

This year, the city plans to hold a startup idea competition and implement startup support projects. Subsequently, through the establishment of a startup incubation center and the creation of an investment environment, the plan is to build a startup ecosystem where startup ideas and the local economy circulate positively through startups and investments.

The 2nd Startup Idea Competition, following last year’s event, will focus on selecting qualified participants and securing expertise. Eligible participants are prospective entrepreneurs nationwide who can register their business in Suncheon within three months.

Based on the experience of the 1st competition, a professional team will be formed to secure expertise in planning and operating the competition. This team, composed of experts in the startup field, will design the development process of startup ideas and set the direction for competition management by April. Afterwards, an agency will be selected by May, and the competition is scheduled to be held from June to November.

Startup support projects targeting entrepreneurs will also be promoted. The city has established a startup support facility named ‘Changup Yeondang’ within the jurisdiction and plans to select an operator to begin operations in April.

At ‘Changup Yeondang,’ office space will be provided to startup teams selected through the startup competition and recruitment of resident companies, along with support for education, mentoring, and investor connections. Additionally, to foster a startup culture, networking events and startup academies for citizens and prospective entrepreneurs will be regularly operated. Through these programs, the city aims to increase citizens’ understanding of startups and lower the barriers to entry.

The ‘Content Industry Reshoring Project,’ promoted as a youth job creation initiative this year, attracted over 300 applicants for 100 positions, confirming the demand for staying and working in the region.

The outline of the ‘Startup Incubation Center,’ which will serve as a hub for the Suncheon-type startup ecosystem, is also emerging. The center, a three-story building to be constructed within the station area urban regeneration zone, will connect entrepreneurs, support organizations, investors, and startup planners scattered across 27 startup support facilities in the city.

After gathering residents’ opinions by April, the design will be completed within this year, and construction is planned to be finished by 2021. The first floor will feature a caf? where citizens, prospective entrepreneurs, and startup experts can interact, while the second and third floors will house startups at different growth stages.

To establish a private-led startup ecosystem, the construction of private governance is also underway. This governance, in the form of an intermediary support organization linking citizens and the government, will operate in four areas.

These include discovering and managing startup support policies, designing and operating support services for startup growth, and developing and running programs to expand the startup base. It will also analyze advanced startup cases and evaluate and research support projects. This governance organization will serve as the foundation for the future establishment of the tentatively named Suncheon Industrial Promotion Agency.

Startups are a field where administrative speed is difficult to apply due to unpredictability caused by market changes. Statistics showing that the survival rate after five years is only about 28% support this fact.

The city plans to launch the tentatively named Suncheon Industrial Promotion Agency to create a private-led startup ecosystem and utilize specialized personnel in the startup field. The promotion agency, responsible for establishing and operating the startup incubation center, fostering region-specific industries, developing domestic and international sales channels, and supporting corporate branding, is scheduled to launch in 2022 after institutional arrangements.

Efforts to build a virtuous cycle startup investment structure are also underway. Although the government’s startup support budget exceeds 1.4 trillion won this year, most of it is concentrated on commercialization support, highlighting the need for reinvestment through investment recovery.

Suncheon City is also providing an annual startup support fund of 100 million won only to teams selected in the competition this year. The city plans to create a startup fund that reinvests recovered investments from growth companies into other startups, moving away from one-sided startup support. The startup fund, which will take the form of a stock company under commercial law through Suncheon City’s investment, is scheduled to be established in 2022 after institutional arrangements.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.