Gwangju City Secures National Funding to Support Startup Growth of Cultural Industry Companies

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Seon-gang] Gwangju Metropolitan City announced on the 7th that the Gwangju Information & Culture Industry Promotion Agency was selected for the Ministry of SMEs and Startups' '2021 Startup Leap Package Support Project,' securing 9.9 billion KRW in national funding.

The Startup Leap Package Support Project provides customized services necessary for the growth of startup companies, such as commercialization funds and specialized programs, targeting companies in their 3rd to 7th year after founding.

From 2017 to 2020, through the Gwangju Information & Culture Industry Promotion Agency, 12.2 billion KRW was supported to 105 companies, creating 316 jobs and contributing to the establishment of a startup ecosystem for local cultural content companies.

This recent selection was made by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups by evaluating the performance of nationwide managing institutions that have operated support projects so far and choosing institutions to extend the projects. Gwangju City gained strength in fostering cultural industries by securing national funds to support startup companies.

Over the next two years, Gwangju City plans to invest a total of 10.3 billion KRW, including 400 million KRW of city funds, to support local cultural content startup companies and others.

To this end, the managing institution, the Gwangju Information & Culture Industry Promotion Agency, will conduct recruitment and selection procedures for startup companies next month.

Detailed information about the Startup Leap Package Support Project can be found later on the Gwangju Information & Culture Industry Promotion Agency website and the Startup Support Portal.

Kim Jun-young, Director of the Culture, Tourism and Sports Office of Gwangju City, said, “Many startup companies fail to overcome the 'death valley' of the startup leap phase and disappear. We will strive to create an environment where excellent cultural content startups discovered and supported by Gwangju City can overcome financial difficulties and grow from startups into unicorn companies without disappearing.”