Namwon City Selected for Local Startup Incubation Center Support Project

by Kim Ugwan

Published 29 May.2025 10:32(KST)

Updated 26 Jul.2025 17:29(KST)

open/close

Presenting a Vision to Lead the Beauty Industry Based on the Jirisan Region

Namwon City in North Jeolla Province (Mayor Choi Kyungsik) announced on the 29th that the Namwon City Bioindustry Research Institute has been finally selected as the host organization for the 2025 'Local Startup Incubation Center Support Project' led by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups.

Namwon City Bioindustry Research Institute in Namwon City has been finally selected as the host organization for the 2025 'Local Startup Incubation Center Support Project' led by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups. Photo by Namwon City

The core objective of this project is to address economic contraction caused by population decline and to promote sustainable development. To achieve this, the project will support the development and operation of incubation programs that leverage regional strengths, thereby fostering the specialization of startup incubation centers and accelerating the growth of tenant companies. The project budget amounts to 70 million KRW.

The project will be led by the Namwon City Bioindustry Research Institute (hereafter referred to as the Bioindustry Research Institute), which has set forth a vision to lead the beauty industry based on the Namwon Jirisan region. The program will be operated through several stages, including: ▲Beauty-Boot Camp (commercialization technology training), ▲Brand-Build Up (new and renewal branding), ▲P-Launch (product production support), ▲Go-to-Market (online marketing support), and ▲Pitch-Ready (IR competency enhancement). The Bioindustry Research Institute plans to continuously link these programs with other support projects it operates, thereby promoting the growth of startup companies.

The city expects that this project will contribute to strengthening product competitiveness and promoting technology commercialization in the green bio market, as well as revitalizing forward and backward linkages in regional industries. This is in response to the recent government policies supporting K-beauty startups and exports, the need to retain young talent, and the potential for regional industry specialization.

Lee Youngcheol, Director of the Namwon City Bioindustry Research Institute, stated, "With this selection, we have created an opportunity to foster regionally specialized startups utilizing high-value-added natural materials from the Namwon Jirisan region." He added, "We will work to discover prospective entrepreneurs, establish incubation infrastructure, and build a local startup ecosystem, thereby establishing a comprehensive support system for companies that is linked to local resources."