CEO Lee Taesik of Korea SMEs and Startups Distribution Center Visits SMEs Entering Public Procurement Market

Visiting Busan-Based Furniture Manufacturer World Furniture
Listening to On-Site Feedback on the Direct Production Confirmation System and Areas for Improvement

Lee Taesik, CEO of the Korea SMEs and Startups Distribution Center, visited World Furniture, a small and medium-sized furniture manufacturing company based in Busan, to listen to opinions on difficulties in sales channels and other challenges.

Lee Taesik, CEO of the Korea Small and Medium Venture Business Distribution Agency, visited World Furniture, a small and medium-sized furniture manufacturing company located in Busan Metropolitan City, on the 17th to listen to on-site opinions such as distribution channel difficulties. Photo by Hanyuwon

World Furniture began its operations in 1990 by manufacturing office furniture and was converted into a corporation in 2000. After receiving its first Certificate of Direct Production in 2008, the company entered the public procurement market and achieved nearly 10 billion won in sales last year. World Furniture was also recognized for its contributions to revitalizing the national economy and creating jobs, receiving the Exemplary SME Award at the Busan SME Entrepreneurs’ Conference last year.

On this day, CEO Lee held a meeting with World Furniture founder Kim Joojong and CEO Kim Minjung, where they discussed challenges related to the direct production confirmation system, sales channels, and marketing.

Kim Minjung, CEO of World Furniture, said, "By obtaining the Certificate of Direct Production, we were able to manufacture and sell furniture to schools and offices, which has enabled us to grow to where we are today. The public procurement market poses no risk of payment delays and involves relatively large-scale transactions, making it very helpful for the growth of SMEs. I hope that public purchasing systems, including the direct production confirmation system, will be further promoted so that other SMEs can also have a foundation for growth."

CEO Lee stated, "We will strive to operate the direct production confirmation system fairly and efficiently so that SMEs manufacturing products can have more opportunities to supply to public institutions. We will continue to collect feedback from SMEs to further enhance the effectiveness of the system."

Since taking charge of the operation of the direct production confirmation system in 2022, Han Yuwon has devoted significant efforts to advancing the system. By holding regular public hearings and expert advisory meetings to develop improvement plans, Han has played a leading role in designing systems to help SMEs enter the public procurement market. As of the end of last year, about 59,000 SMEs had entered the public procurement market by leveraging the Certificate of Direct Production as a stepping stone.

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