[Startup Struggle①-3] 'Principles, Pain Points, Enjoyment' How They Succeeded This Way

Unique Startup Philosophy of Three Successful Founders

[Asia Economy Reporter Onyu Lim] Danggeun Market, which means 'a market near you,' was selected as the 'Best Application of 2019' by Google Play. Unlike existing secondhand trading platforms, it strengthened trust between traders through neighborhood verification, manner ratings, and transaction reviews. Founded in 2015, it surpassed 10 million cumulative downloads and received 40 billion KRW in investment within four years, emerging as a success icon in the startup world. Kim Jaehyun, CEO of Danggeun Market, explained the secret to success as "because we stick to our principles." He said that if they had broken the founding principle of local-based direct transactions, they would have lost their way and failed.

Successful startups like Danggeun Market have their own philosophies. Kim Minhee, CEO of Tutoring, the nation's No.1 native speaker conversation app, advised, "You need to find the pain point." This is because pain points, where many people feel inconvenience, are the starting point of new markets. Lee Donggeon, CEO of MyRealTrip, a comprehensive travel platform connecting over 630 cities in more than 80 countries worldwide, advised, "You have to find what you really want to try, challenge yourself, and endure." He emphasized that rather than following others, walking your own path with perseverance to withstand crises is the DNA of startup success.

Kim Jaehyun, CEO of Danggeun Market: "Stick to Your Principles Until the End"

Jaehyun Kim, CEO of Danggeun Market

Kim Jaehyun, CEO of Danggeun Market, described the survival condition for startups as "persistence above all," advising, "If you have set a principle, stick to it until the end." Danggeun Market is Google’s Best App of the Year and the No.1 secondhand trading app in Korea. Unlike existing secondhand trading apps like Junggonara and Bungaejangter, it is based on local communities. Users can only trade with people from 'our neighborhood.' Although the neighborhood range varies depending on population density, broadly speaking, residents of Daechi-dong can only trade with other Daechi-dong residents.

Kim said, "We have heard complaints from users asking 'Why can't I trade with the next neighborhood?' from the early days until now, four years and six months later, but we still do not listen." This is because if this principle is broken, the safety, reliability, and convenience of local-based direct transactions could be compromised.

As a result, Kim’s persistence paid off. Danggeun Market surpassed 10 million cumulative downloads and has 4 million monthly visitors. Kim said, "Because it’s close, people often sell cheaply, sometimes accepting 8,000 KRW instead of 10,000 KRW," adding, "Since buyers and sellers are neighbors, there is no unreasonable haggling that causes conflict or worries about selling broken items." In other words, 'mannered secondhand trading' has been activated through Danggeun Market. According to an internal survey, 994 out of 1,000 users expressed satisfaction.

This year, Danggeun Market plans to evolve from a local secondhand trading platform to a local lifestyle information platform. They aim to increase monthly visitors to 10 million. Kim said, "We plan to connect the neighborhood in various ways, such as hosting cooking classes or dog walking," adding, "In this process, the neighborhood range may become even narrower than it is now."

Kim Minhee, CEO of Tutoring: "Find the Pain Point First"

Kim Mi-hee, CEO of Tutoring. Photo by Jang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

Kim Minhee, CEO of Tutoring, the nation’s No.1 native speaker conversation app, previously worked as a software planner for Samsung Electronics’ Galaxy smartphones. She launched various services such as ChatON, Samsung Hub, and eBooks. However, the only surviving service is Tutoring. From this experience, she realized the importance of 'finding the pain point.'

In fact, Tutoring started from Kim’s own pain. English conversation was an unresolved challenge for her after school and working years. She was busy attending English academies, and one-on-one tutoring was expensive. Phone English had limited content, and online English lacked interaction. Kim thought, "This is something only I can solve on Earth." Thus, Tutoring was born to connect tutors and members regardless of time and place. Since launching in September 2016, it surpassed 1 million subscribers in three years.

Kim emphasized, "Because the founder’s persona and the customer’s persona are the same, all decision-making minimized costs." Running a startup is a continuous series of choices, with over 90% decided by intuition rather than rational indicators. Kim explained, "If the customer’s pain point is the same as mine, efficient decision-making is possible," adding, "When curious about the customer’s choice, just ask, 'What would I do?'" In fact, tracking paid users showed that many shared Kim’s persona, such as being impatient and preferring eBooks over paper books. She is confident that "if the pain point is clear, startups can compensate for their weaknesses in people, infrastructure, and money compared to large corporations."

Of course, pain points do not guarantee continuous success. For growth, constant motivation for employees is necessary. Kim said, "Tutoring values individual growth more than company growth," adding, "How to grow each individual is the company’s mission." She continued, "A startup is an organization where 1+1 is greater than 2," emphasizing, "We need to nurture the curiosity of 'Gaeketer' (marketers like developers) and 'Mabalja' (developers like marketers) so they grow on their own."

Lee Donggeon, CEO of MyRealTrip: "Just Try It, Then Endure"

Lee Dong-gun, CEO of MyRealTrip

MyRealTrip, a comprehensive travel platform connecting over 630 cities in more than 80 countries worldwide, recorded a total transaction amount of 360 billion KRW last year. It is also a next-generation unicorn company (a private company valued at over 1 trillion KRW) certified by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups. Lee Donggeon, CEO of MyRealTrip, said, "Some startup CEOs discourage others by saying 'Do you know how hard starting a business is?' but I disagree," adding, "If you want to try, you must try no matter what."

This comes from experience. Lee, who longed to start a business, got a hint from a startup lecture during his university days that 'travel is promising' and added his experience to launch Korea’s first guide brokerage service. Lee recalled, "During my exchange student days in Germany, I went to the beer festival 'Oktoberfest' with a second-generation Korean-German. I realized that the quality of experience can completely change through one person, gaining much more fun and information than going alone."

MyRealTrip started this way and shocked the travel industry with unique guide brokerage services such as sketching with a Paris art student and grocery shopping with a handsome chef in Barcelona, Spain. Lee explained, "As Korean travelers’ standards rose, they began to want slightly more special experiences like 'what they did' and 'what they ate.'"

Lee emphasized that what everyone needs, even if they start recklessly, is 'patience.' He said, "It was mentally tough to see startups that started similarly in their 2nd or 3rd year soaring," adding, "Soaring is a rare case, and startups require a lot of effort and a long process." As a result of patience, MyRealTrip succeeded in tripling its transaction amount every year. It was also selected as a 'Highly Likely Successful Company in 2020' by Job Planet.

MyRealTrip is also famous as a 'company you want to go to.' It has adopted radical flexible work systems such as autonomous attendance and remote work. Recently, it has been focusing on talent acquisition. Lee said, "Rather than saying 'Our company is good' ten times, shouting 'Our company has this kind of person' once is more effective," adding, "Since recruiting a new Chief Technology Officer (CTO) recently, developer applications have increased significantly."