Naver Square Gwangju, Recruiting Smart Store Operators for Free Shared Office Move-in

Naver Square Gwangju announced on the 5th that it is recruiting the 2nd batch of partner companies wishing to move into the Partners Space until the 19th of this month. As in the previous year, a total of 7 Smart Store business teams will be selected.

Since October 2022, Naver Square has been providing SMEs and creators with free office space called Partners Space, in addition to studios and lecture rooms.

Naver Square Gwangju began offering free office space along with educational programs to partner companies on a business basis for the first time in January last year. As a result of providing free infrastructure and education for 6 months to up to 1 year to 7 Smart Store business teams, the average transaction amount of these resident companies increased by 40% compared to before moving in, confirming that it helped scale up their businesses.

Opened in September 2018, Naver Square Gwangju is an offline education space equipped with various infrastructures, including food-specialized spaces such as a cooking studio. Resident companies can use the Partners Room with desks for work, meeting rooms that can accommodate more than 10 people, lounges, and rest areas. In addition, they can freely use the photo and video studios within 'Naver Square Gwangju' and participate in various offline educational programs such as shooting mentoring and search advertising training for business growth, all free of charge.

Free shared office residency has been confirmed to have a positive impact on both the quantitative and qualitative growth of businesses. Costs required for space usage such as office setup or studio rental can be replaced with new hires necessary for business growth, enabling cost reduction and business growth opportunities. It is also easier to gain business know-how through information exchange among resident companies.

In fact, ThanksToGift, a Smart Store selling camping supplies, saw its sales increase fourfold after moving into Naver Square Gwangju’s free shared office by actively utilizing video infrastructure and educational programs such as shooting mentoring and studio guidance. GongguBaekseo, a one-person Smart Store selling living goods, also succeeded in scaling up its business by increasing sales sixfold after moving into the space last year, collaborating with other businesses through networking, and participating in various consultations, raising its sales grade from Seed to Power.

Naver Square Jongno provides work desk space free of charge on a daily basis. SMEs needing product registration or detailed page creation, as well as creators requiring premium content planning, can easily use the space individually through Naver Reservation. So far, more than 1,230 business operators have visited.

Gong Gi-jung, head of Naver Education Center, said, "At the growth stage of SMEs and creators, exchanging with other businesses or gaining employment creation opportunities is important, and Naver Square Gwangju is playing a role as a startup and community infrastructure in the region." He added, "We will continue to strengthen support for online and offline education packages and infrastructure to help the business growth of SMEs and creators."

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