Seocho-gu Supports Cultural and Artistic Youth Startups

District to Hold 'Social Economy Culture and Arts Young Entrepreneurs Performance Report' on 14th... This Year’s 'Social Economy Culture and Arts Young Startup Support Project' Produces 21 Entrepreneur Teams... Up to 250 Million KRW Support, 5.4 Million KRW Rent, Consulting Provided to Total 21 Teams

# Craft product manufacturing company ‘Shell On Atelie’ has laid the foundation for growth by developing craft products using unique plaster techniques and sculptural decorations. The company participated in home table decor fairs such as The Maison at COEX, Home Table Deco Fair, and BEXCO, resulting in a 150% increase in sales compared to the previous year.

# Actor casting and new entertainer discovery platform company ‘Plfil’ saw its sales increase by more than 200% compared to the previous year. It successfully held film directing seminars for aspiring filmmakers and secured investment from Primer, the top startup accelerator*.

A startup accelerator refers to a specialized organization that provides office space, startup capital, and mentoring to startup companies.

The growth of these two youth startup companies is the result of building capabilities through business expenses, promotion, marketing, and consulting supported by Seocho-gu.

Seocho-gu, Seoul (District Mayor Jeon Seong-su) will hold a final performance report meeting at the district office on the 14th with 21 youth entrepreneurs selected for the ‘2023 Social Economy Culture and Arts Youth Startup Support Project.’

The district is holding this report meeting to share the achievements of youth entrepreneurs in the social economy culture and arts sector, including the above cases, and to invite social mentors of youth entrepreneurs for evaluation time.

The event will be divided into two parts. The first part includes ▲Opening and congratulatory performance ▲Youth startup teams’ performance presentations ▲Expert evaluation committee’s general remarks ▲Greetings ▲Commemorative photo session. The second part includes ▲Presentation of business participation impressions and satisfaction survey.

The district’s ‘Social Economy Culture and Arts Youth Startup Support Project’ is a program that enhances the growth potential of social economy enterprises for youth in culture and arts and supports their startups. It is also known as the ‘Seocho-type social economy enterprise’ development. Social economy enterprises are business models that solve social problems with ideas while simultaneously pursuing corporate profits, social value, and job creation.

All 21 teams selected for the project earlier this year were successfully launched as youth entrepreneurs. The number of employees increased by 17 compared to the previous year, totaling 61.

Since the project began in 2018, the district has achieved results with 108 youth startup teams in the culture and arts sector and about 289 early entrepreneurs mostly succeeding in their startups.

Since January, the district selected 21 teams of youth startup companies and prospective entrepreneurs in the social economy culture and arts sector. Support includes up to 25 million KRW in initial business support funds, up to 5.4 million KRW for business rental fees, one-on-one expert consulting, academies, and networking to help stable settlement and foundation building. Additionally, last year Seocho-gu opened the Social Economy Integrated Support Center, providing programs such as social enterprise entry consulting and live commerce for market expansion.

Going forward, the district plans to explore linking social economy enterprises with district-led projects.

Seocho District Mayor Jeon Seong-su said, “I send encouragement to the courage and efforts of young people who have started startups,” adding, “We will continue to support youth startups so that they can realize their dreams and contribute to their success.”

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