'Not a Part-timer?' The Identity of the 31-Year-Old Female Startup CEO... Turns Out

Startup ConnectArt Matching Writers and Companies
31-Year-Old Female CEO Former Fashion Marketing Major
Contact List of 3,000... Network Is the Greatest Asset

As the domestic art market surpasses 1 trillion won in size, startup creation is becoming more active. Following art tech (art + financial technology) and subscription services, startups that match artists with companies have also emerged. One such platform company is ‘ConnectArt’.

ConnectArt aims to be the ‘Airbnb of the art world.’ In just 10 months since its founding, the company has worked with nearly 50 artists, including actor-turned-artists Lee Taeseong and Yoon Songa. Its main business is a brokerage service that connects these artists with companies that hold exhibitions and other events. So far, it has organized about 10 exhibitions or connected artists with companies. Although it is a ‘newbie startup’ with only four employees, it is gaining presence in the industry by recently organizing a photo exhibition for singer Hwang Chanseong.

The background of Kim Heerim (31), the CEO leading ConnectArt, is somewhat unique. She is a ‘non-art major.’ She majored in fashion and mainly worked as a marketer. She also enjoyed photography and once worked as a ‘magazine model part-timer.’ Being young, she is sometimes mistaken for a part-timer at exhibition sites.

Her reason for entering the art startup field began with a question she had during her marketing career. While doing art-related marketing, she found it frustrating that ‘PR agencies don’t understand art, and client companies don’t understand art marketing.’ She thought it would be great to have a platform in the art world similar to Airbnb, which connects homes and travelers. Initially, she started as a social venture while working at a company. After several exhibitions, she gained confidence and re-founded the company as ConnectArt.

CEO Kim is far from the typical ‘silver spoon’ image often associated with the art world. When she came to Seoul from Daegu to start her business in earnest, she had only 3 million won in hand. For a while, she lived in a share house. Her assets were not capital but connections and networks. She has 2,991 contacts saved on her phone, more than most salespeople. She was so well-connected that she was called a ‘human platform’ and an ‘insider.’

The Hwang Chanseong photo exhibition was also made possible through the power of her network. While organizing an exhibition, she met a marketing expert with many connections in the entertainment industry. Through him, she was connected to a representative of Hwang Chanseong’s agency. Although Kim had no direct relationship with Hwang, this led to the photo exhibition. As word spread, many artists now come to ConnectArt first.

ConnectArt was also selected as a participating company in the ‘2023 Youth Startup Academy,’ a project hosted by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups. This program supports companies within three years of establishment that have excellent items and innovative technologies with up to 100 million won. Through the ‘NEW:MIXTAPE’ street exhibition of the recently organized ‘Hey, Itaewon’ project, high-ranking officials from the Ministry of SMEs and Startups also visited. At that time, Minister Lee Young and Deputy Director Cho Kyungwon of the Small Business Policy Bureau attended the site and shared a dinner. This shows that the network is expanding even to government levels.

Kim Hee-rim, CEO of ConnectArt (third from the left), and Lee Young, Minister of SMEs and Startups (seventh from the left)

ConnectArt, which has just taken its first steps, is only beginning its journey. It plans to grow its scale domestically and expand overseas. CEO Kim said, “I want to create an environment where artists with unstable incomes can continue their activities,” adding, “I believe there is enough potential, so I want to take the lead in widely promoting ‘K-Art.’”

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