Seongdong-gu Supports Low-Income Residents' Independence through the Launch of the 2nd Self-Support Enterprise

Four beneficiaries from the Seongdong Regional Self-Sufficiency Center convenience store project team gathered to launch the 2nd self-sufficiency enterprise convenience store

Using the startup as a stepping stone for a new leap forward and spreading a message of hope to residents participating in self-sufficiency projects

Seongdong-gu (Mayor Jeong Won-oh) announced that the Seongdong Regional Self-Sufficiency Center (Director Lee Seon-hwa) convenience store project team has established the self-sufficiency enterprise ‘GS25 KD Building Branch’ and held an opening ceremony on the 16th.

Four conditional beneficiaries who had previously participated in self-sufficiency labor projects formed a cooperative and, with support from Seongdong-gu and the Seongdong Regional Self-Sufficiency Center, jointly launched the convenience store. The cooperative members received professional know-how in distribution and management from GS Retail and officially began operations starting with the opening ceremony on the 16th. They had accumulated experience working at the Seongdong Regional Self-Sufficiency Center’s convenience store project team and participated in 24-hour operations.

They nurtured their dream of independence and, despite the challenging work environment of three shifts, established the cooperative in April this year with the determination to achieve self-reliance through their own efforts. In July, they were recognized as a self-sufficiency enterprise by Seongdong-gu and launched the convenience store, thereby laying the foundation for a new life. This is the second self-sufficiency enterprise startup following the first self-sufficiency enterprise ‘Hope Narsha,’ which delivers grains.

They secured initial funds through startup support grants, and profits generated from operating the convenience store will be saved and used later for loan repayment and store operations.

Seongdong-gu plans to provide institutional support, including temporary wage payments, to help them succeed in becoming self-reliant.

Hwang, the representative of ‘GS25 KD Building Branch,’ said, “Today’s successful startup was possible thanks to the support of those involved,” and added, “We hope our message of hope for independence will have a positive impact on others participating in self-sufficiency activities.”

The Seongdong Regional Self-Sufficiency Center has been operating 17 self-sufficiency project teams, including convenience store and food service teams, since 2000 to support the sustainable self-reliance capabilities of low-income local residents.

Jeong Won-oh, Mayor of Seongdong-gu, said, “I sincerely congratulate the launch of the 2nd self-sufficiency enterprise convenience store in Seongdong-gu,” and added, “We will continue to make policy efforts to help residents participating in self-sufficiency projects find their path to independence.”

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