Seoul City Launches Full-Scale Promotion of Private Zero Market... Recruiting and Supporting Participating Businesses

Recruiting 95 Operators for 'Seoul Zero Market' to Reduce Unnecessary Single-Use Packaging
Support of 2 Million to 8 Million KRW for New Zero Market Openings and In-Store Refill Station Operations

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] On the 13th, the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced that it will actively promote the 'Private Zero Market Activation Support Project,' which supports small-scale private zero-waste stores and various forms of zero markets to spread a zero-waste consumption culture that reduces unnecessary disposable products and packaging materials.

A ‘Zero Market’ is a store that sells products with minimal use of disposable items and disposable packaging, uses reusable containers, and allows consumers to purchase in small quantities or refill as needed. The city plans to activate zero markets to provide citizens with opportunities to practice zero waste in their daily lives and fundamentally reduce packaging waste from the production and consumption stages.

Currently, most zero-waste stores operated privately are small-scale one-person businesses, often facing difficulties in securing various products and promoting to consumers. Reflecting field opinions, Seoul will recruit and support 95 existing private zero-waste stores and various types of zero markets this year.

The support targets include △ specialized zero-waste stores selling small-quantity or refill products △ flower shops reducing packaging materials △ side dish stores using reusable containers △ businesses opening and operating small-quantity or refill corners in existing supermarkets or sales stores, with support ranging from a minimum of 2 million KRW to a maximum of 8 million KRW.

Selected businesses will receive not only subsidies but also education for opening and operating zero market businesses, and support to build self-sustainability through network formation for joint purchasing and promotion. The application period is until the 30th. Applicants can download the application form from the Seoul Metropolitan Government website or the Seoul Design Foundation website, fill it out, and submit it to the Design Foundation.

To raise awareness of the somewhat unfamiliar zero-waste culture among citizens, last year the city operated a zero-waste pilot space called ‘Zero Forest’ at the Seoul Upcycling Plaza and a ‘Zero Market’ pop-up store within large retail stores. Currently, information such as location, products sold, and operating hours of 103 private zero-waste stores in Seoul can be found on the ‘Smart Seoul Map.’

Yoo Yeon-sik, Head of the Climate and Environment Headquarters, said, “We hope to provide some help to small business owners who operate zero-waste stores with a sense of mission despite difficult conditions through Seoul city support,” adding, “We will further strive to make it easier for citizens to practice eco-friendly consumption in their daily lives by supporting the conversion of various stores such as flower shops and side dish stores into ‘Zero Markets’ and expanding to 1,000 locations by 2026.”

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