[Jihye Choi's Trend 2023] Allow "Side Projects"... The "Spin-Off Spirit" We Need Now

Companies Encouraging Launch of Sub-Brands
Breaking Down Boundaries Leads to Steady Achievements
A Survival Strategy Essential in an Unpredictable Era

In Star Wars and Marvel movies, many spin-off works feature supporting characters becoming protagonists and leading the story. This form is called a spin-off. Although spin-offs originated in the content domain, recently the concept has expanded into various fields. The grammar of spin-offs is now being applied beyond brands to individuals as well.

First, let's look at brand spin-offs. Brand spin-offs have been widely used as a method where a parent brand creates sub-brands to develop new business models or renew brand images. In Korea, there are increasing cases of launching sub-brands because long-established brands use spin-offs as a strategy to shed old-fashioned images. For example, ‘Dunst,’ which started as an in-house venture of LF in 2019, is a representative case. Dunst is a street casual brand focused on young sensibilities targeting consumers in their 20s and 30s. It rapidly grew through a minimalist design and an online mall-centered entry strategy, and in April 2021, it was spun off into an independent corporation called City Dots. Recently, it has targeted the global market and, within two years of becoming independent, has grown into a company with annual sales exceeding 20 billion KRW. Kolon FnC’s ‘24/7’ and ‘Archive PNK’ are also cited as successful examples of brand spin-offs through in-house ventures.

Brands whose main consumers were infants or children have become more proactive in spin-offs due to the effects of low birth rates and aging populations. As per capita milk consumption decreased due to low birth rates, the dairy industry has long targeted the adult protein market. While Ildong Foodis Hi-Mune and Maeil Dairies Selex lead the market, companies such as Maeil Dairies, Namyang Dairy, and Seoul Milk are also growing related brands through various protein powders and beverages. In particular, Hi-Mune showed a smooth start by achieving 30 billion KRW in sales in its first year and reached cumulative sales of 130 billion KRW the following year. The education company Daekyo Group, while seeking to deepen existing educational content, launched ‘Daekyo Newif,’ a senior total care service brand offering day care, home nursing, professional instructor training and dispatch, and cognitive care content development targeting seniors.

Spin-offs in the media industry are also active. With the development of social networking services (SNS) weakening the influence of mass media relatively, major media companies are boldly breaking away from existing formats and styles to try various spin-off strategies. MBC launched the YouTube channel 14F (Ilsa F), meaning ‘14th floor people,’ which had 1.81 million subscribers as of August 2023. KBS focused on young generations interested in finance with KLAB, and JoongAng Ilbo launched the YouTube channel ‘Deutttokla’ targeting the same demographic.

Importantly, spin-offs are not limited to brands but also significantly impact individuals’ lives. There is growing interest among office workers in spinning off their careers outside their main jobs, known as ‘side projects.’ Side projects originally referred to developing new software in the tech field but have expanded in meaning to performing one’s own projects and producing results. Side projects differ from simple side jobs. They involve dedicating personal time to pursue achievements related to work or separate areas of interest. Through side projects, individuals create new careers, practice self-development, and sometimes connect to opportunities for entrepreneurship or job changes.

According to Conan Technology, a social big data analysis company, mentions related to ‘side projects’ have been increasing over time, especially peaking every January. Associated words such as ‘experience,’ ‘study,’ and ‘development’ stand out, encompassing studying or gaining experience for self-development beyond company work. Positive emotional words like ‘good,’ ‘recommend,’ and ‘growth’ are also frequently mentioned in connection with side projects.

In this atmosphere, companies that previously viewed side projects negatively are changing. Rather than dismissing side projects as mere distractions, some companies actively encourage them. Microsoft (MS) is famously known for officially promoting side projects. Through its Garage program, dozens of side projects run simultaneously, regardless of their relation to main work. This is recognized as helping employees’ personal growth and indirectly contributing to MS headquarters’ development.

‘University Tomorrow’ (Daehaknaeil) also actively encourages its members to engage in side projects both inside and outside the company. They believe that developing one’s strengths well leads to performance for both individuals and organizations. Daehaknaeil removed the clause in company regulations stating ‘employees cannot hold concurrent positions without company permission.’ They also promote side projects through a company-wide participation system, which allows employees to help each other across team boundaries based on interests and needs. Various topics such as mentoring, talent donation, and trend research are conducted.

Spin-offs are an essential strategy in an era of rapid change and sudden crises marked by uncertainty. Recently, Market Kurly and Danggeun Market dropped ‘Market’ from their names, becoming ‘Kurly’ and ‘Danggeun,’ respectively. While there are various calculations behind this, it likely reflects an intention to transcend the ‘market’ domain and try diverse approaches. The same applies to individuals. Rather than setting limits on oneself, an era requiring various spin-off strategies based on interests has arrived.

Experts gathered at the 2023 World Economic Forum (WEF) defined the recent situation as a polycrisis era, meaning multiple crises unpredictably occur, and prolonged instability becomes the norm. Although spin-offs began as a content expansion strategy, perhaps spin-offs are a mindset and life philosophy for all of us living through an era of multiple crises. How will we vary and adapt? This is a moment for deep reflection.

Choi Ji-hye, Research Fellow at Seoul National University Consumer Trend Analysis Center (Co-author of the ‘Trend Korea’ series)