Asan Nanum Foundation Startup Support Center 'Maru180' Celebrates 6th Anniversary of Opening

Providing Various Benefits Such as Office Space and Mentoring to 209 Startups Over 6 Years

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Cheolhyun] Asan Nanum Foundation (Chairman Han Jeonghwa) announced that the startup support center 'Maru180' celebrated its 6th anniversary on the 14th. Located at 180 Yeoksam-ro, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, Maru180 is a startup support center established in April 2014 by Asan Nanum Foundation as part of its youth startup support project. With a total area of 1,090 pyeong across one basement floor and five above-ground floors, it provides comprehensive solutions including office space, networking, investment, and education for startups.

Over the past six years, approximately 910,000 people have visited Maru180, and the total number of startups supported with office space at Maru180 reached 209. The average competition rate for the biannual regular recruitment of resident startups over the past six years was 18 to 1. Currently, eight startups including Seedronics and Colosseum Corporation are residing at Maru180, fully dedicated to their businesses.

The growth rate of all resident startups during their stay at Maru180 is also remarkable. The average investment amount raised by resident startups during their residency was about 2.1 billion KRW, and the number of employees increased from an average of 7 to 13, approximately doubling. Among these startups, 75% succeeded in raising investment during their residency at Maru180.

Maru180 has conducted various programs not only for resident startups but also to broaden the startup ecosystem base. The Mentoring Lab, which invites expert mentors in investment, marketing, and publicity to provide practical help to prospective entrepreneurs and founders, has been held about 270 times over six years. Through this, 681 teams have experienced mentoring. In the basement event hall, more than 2,700 startup-related events such as demo days, hackathons, and networking sessions have been held. Additionally, about 1.5 billion KRW has been sponsored to 67 organizations that have hosted startup-related events, education, and conferences so far, with approximately 76,000 participants attending these events.

Furthermore, Asan Nanum Foundation has created the 'Chung Ju-yung Angel Investment Fund' to revitalize the investment ecosystem alongside operating Maru180, conducting investment projects with 29 excellent venture capital firms and accelerators. Approximately 37 billion KRW in commitments were invested, forming funds worth about 1 trillion KRW, through which 786 startups received investments.

Han Jeonghwa, Chairman of Asan Nanum Foundation, said, "As a private foundation, Asan Nanum Foundation has spared no effort over the past six years since the opening to support entrepreneurs and expand the startup ecosystem base." He added, "Next year, we plan to open Maru360 near Maru180 to triple the scale of supported teams and support entrepreneurs in various fields."

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