[Vitamin SME] Reading Enthusiastically and Watching Musicals... China's Unrivaled 'Insider of the Educational Supplies World' Mangong's Expertise

<7> Creative Educational Materials Company Skollas CEO Kim Seoncheol
Supports Employee Cultural Activities Through Monthly Book Discussions and Movie & Hope Days
Focuses on Korean History to Prevent Low-Cost Chinese Counterfeits... ManGong (Learning While Making) Series Gains Great Popularity

Despite facing management difficulties due to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) crisis, there are small but strong companies where labor and management unite to overcome the crisis. The source of strength that enables these companies to overcome hardships amid numerous environmental changes such as economic downturn caused by COVID-19 is coexistence. They enhance their competitiveness through various methods, including operating in-house welfare systems that help employees enjoy their work life and developing and investing in new technologies for sustainable growth. We introduce 'Vitamin Small Giants'?companies that invigorate by having employers and workers consider each other and move forward together toward common goals.

Kim Sun-cheol, CEO of Scolus, explained that employee welfare centered on enjoyment and learning must come first in order to develop creative educational tools.

"Employees must be happy to create innovative products. That’s why I always emphasize to my staff, 'Let’s work with fun.'"

Kim Sun-cheol, CEO of Scholas, a creative educational toy company known for its 'Manggoong (learning while making)' series, says that employees’ sensitivity and creativity are the company’s value and asset. Scholas, whose philosophy is encapsulated in the catchphrase 'Good Culture, Good Education,' breathes fun and stories into its products and services, leading to the release of the 3D puzzle 'Ddureo Mandeuneun Sesang' and the history textbooks series 'Manggoong Korean History' and 'Manggoong World History.' CEO Kim explained, "To provide children with enjoyable education, we thought we must first enjoy ourselves. Therefore, we focused all employee welfare on 'learning' and 'fun.'"

Although temporarily halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Scholas employees participate in a monthly book discussion. There are eight in-house reading clubs. Sixty books selected annually through employee recommendations serve as the foundation for avid reading. Over 500 books have been selected for the book discussions, which have been held for eight years. Instead of a noisy restaurant, the year-end party is a Scholas tradition of dining at a luxury hotel followed by watching a major musical together. Through the monthly Movie and Hope Day, employees watch movies and share various reviews while enjoying draft beer.

Scholas supports various cultural activities to enhance employees' sensitivity and creativity through monthly book discussions, Movie & Hope Day, regular training sessions, and workshops. Photo by Scholas

Realizing Emotional Welfare through Monthly Book Discussions and Movie & Hope Events

In the early days of the company, CEO Kim proposed a children’s gift set themed on the movie series 'The Lord of the Rings' to a fast-food company, which was adopted. All employees worked overnight for a month to meet the delivery of 1.2 million units. Most employees were 'ajummas' (middle-aged women) from Wonju, Gangwon-do, where the headquarters is located. CEO Kim went on an incentive trip to Hong Kong with employees who were making their first passports. "That year, we participated in an international exhibition for the first time, and as the company grew, sharing the results with employees created a philosophy," said CEO Kim, adding, "A company is a place that plans business, that is, a place to share bread (Company), and I found hope that a company can grow together as a people-centered organization within a community, equally and freely."

CEO Kim, who majored in Korean philosophy in college and political science in graduate school, dreamed of social change through unification, peace movements, and politics. "Around the time I graduated from graduate school, I thought that if I plunged into politics while poor, I might become exhausted," he said. "The proverb 'Muhangsanja Muhangsim (無恒産者無恒心, those without stable livelihood or property cannot enjoy peace of mind)' inspired me to challenge entrepreneurship."

In 1999, during a business trip to Hong Kong, CEO Kim happened to visit the souvenir fair 'Gift Premium' and was inspired by high-quality promotional items exhibited from the U.S. and Japan. He decided to focus on 3D model souvenirs for children as the main product and established his position by supplying souvenirs to companies such as a study material company, educational firms, and Asiana Airlines.

The Mankong (Learning While Creating) Korean History series has become an opportunity to both prevent low-cost counterfeit products from Chinese companies and expand Scholas' business area into educational materials. Photo by Scholas

Developing Korean History Educational Toys to Prevent Copying by Chinese Companies

The joy of success was short-lived as Chinese companies copied products and launched low-price offensives, leading to a crisis. CEO Kim recalled, "If it was obvious that China would copy any idea we came up with, we had to create products with items that could not be copied." He added, "I thought that items based on our history with educational messages would be something China could not easily imitate." The Manggoong Korean History series, born from this idea, transformed Scholas from an educational toy company into an education company, receiving enthusiastic responses from students and parents. The follow-up Manggoong World History series is also very popular.

Recently, as online classes for kindergartens and elementary schools have prolonged due to COVID-19, sales of educational toys have surged, marking a turning point for Scholas. CEO Kim said, "Based on our educational toy production technology, we have entered the packaging business and established a corporation called Coripack last year to build a packaging platform." He added, "We will do our best to create a virtuous cycle where employees, the company, and customers are happy by growing, sharing, and fulfilling social responsibility."

Scholas Company Information. Graphic by Designer Jin-kyung Lee