‘Gwanak-gu Sharosugil’ Selected for 2024 Seoul Local Brand Commercial Area Development Project
Sharosugil Reborn as a Content Commercial Area Preserving Its Unique Charm and Adding Freshness
Gwanak-gu (Mayor Park Jun-hee) has achieved the great success of being selected in the Seoul Metropolitan Government's '2024 Local Brand Commercial District Development Project' competition.
The 'Local Brand Commercial District Development Project' is a key initiative by Seoul to transform local commercial districts with unique characteristics and charm into 'commercial districts where people want to stay.'
The project aims to nurture promising commercial districts with local content such as regional characteristics and cultural resources, as well as creative small business owners, into representative local brands of Seoul, thereby contributing to the revitalization of the local economy. Through this, comprehensive support is provided from establishing the foundation of local commercial districts to branding, fostering creative small business owners, and supporting startups to strengthen self-sustainability.
The commercial district selected this time in Gwanak-gu is 'Sharosugil,' one of the district's representative commercial areas.
Sharosugil began in the early 2010s with the opening of unique dining establishments and grew organically through word of mouth among nearby Seoul National University students. The name was given because the shape of the Seoul National University symbolic sculpture resembles the Korean character 'Sha.'
Additionally, Sharosugil is home to many diverse and distinctive international restaurants, and its popularity has been increasing day by day. It has the great advantage of being only a 2-minute walk from exits 1 and 2 of Seoul National University Station, making it easily accessible to everyone.
Moreover, nearby cultural facilities such as Nakseongdae Park, Gwanak Cultural Center, and Single Bungle Center attract many residents who come out for outings with family, lovers, and friends.
With this selection, the district will invest up to 3 billion KRW over three years to implement a three-stage project (Stage 1: Foundation Building, Stage 2: Securing Self-Sustainability, Stage 3: Sustainability) that preserves Sharosugil's unique characteristics while adding new elements. Stage 1 will be carried out in collaboration with the Credit Guarantee Foundation and Gwanak-gu, while Stages 2 and 3 will be led by Gwanak-gu and the commercial district development organization.
Starting this month, the district will actively begin support projects such as fostering creative small business owners, commercial district branding, and organizing merchants. The plan is to actively discover and nurture young and creative small business owners, support startups, and create diversification of commercial district content.
Along with this, the district plans to create a foundation where visitors can stay longer and enjoy themselves by satisfying young people's desire to produce content, such as photo spots, thereby continuously creating a commercial district that is always new and constantly growing.
Mayor Park Jun-hee said, "Being selected for this competition is the result of the alley commercial district revitalization projects we have been promoting so far, and we expect it to be a catalyst for our local economy to take a step forward." He added, "We will continue to do our best so that the competitiveness of small business owners and alley commercial districts grow together and the local economy can be revitalized."
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