"Fostering Local Brands"... Ministry of SMEs and Startups Invests 40 Billion Won in Small Business Innovation Program

Online Applications Accepted Until June 8

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups is launching, for the first time this year, a package support program worth up to 100 million won to nurture local small business owners in the lifestyle and culture sectors. The plan is to foster brands that utilize local specialties and tourism resources in order to revitalize local commercial districts and strengthen their self-sustainability.

Seoul, Jongno-gu, Gwangjang Market view. Photo by The Asia Business Daily Database

On May 7, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced the recruitment of companies to participate in the '2026 Lifestyle and Culture Innovation Support Program for Small Businesses.' This program has been newly established with a supplementary budget of 40 billion won.

The core of the program is to select approximately 400 small businesses with innovative ideas in lifestyle-related sectors such as food, beauty, and fashion, and support the advancement of their products and services. Selected companies will receive up to 100 million won in package support that covers both technology development and commercialization.

Support items include technology development such as eco-friendly material development, product and recipe development, and prototype production, as well as commercialization phases including branding, design, packaging, and marketing. The Ministry of SMEs and Startups plans to address on-site challenges that may arise during the commercialization process and also support collaboration with private sector partners.

Additionally, the program will provide close support throughout the entire commercialization process by connecting participants with experts and experienced small business owners as mentors, and will offer business education and networking programs among participants. There is also a plan to establish a step-by-step support system by identifying outstanding products and services and supporting their commercialization and expansion of results.

The program is open to small business owners currently operating their businesses. In addition to individual applications, joint applications in the form of consortia with private sector partners with technical expertise are also allowed.

In the interest of balanced regional development, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups plans to allocate more than 70% of all selected projects to non-metropolitan areas. In addition, projects linked to local identity—such as those utilizing regional specialties, traditional skills, and tourism resources—will be given priority and fostered as representative local products and services.

Kim Jungjoo, Director of Small Business Policy at the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, stated, "We hope this will serve as an opportunity for the creative ideas of small business owners to grow into innovative brands that reflect the characteristics of their regions," adding, "We look forward to the active participation of small business owners who will drive new changes in local commercial districts." Small business owners wishing to participate can apply online via 'Small Business 24' from May 18 to June 8.

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