Busan City Selects 10 'Star Small Businesses' for This Year

Discovering 10 Promising Small Businesses Annually... Selection of Star Small Businesses and Support for 'Busan Representative Brands'

Benefits Include Expert Growth Strategy Mentoring, Growth Support Funds, Special Loan Interest Rate Benefits, and Joint Marketing Support

Busan Metropolitan City has selected 10 companies as the '2024 Busan Star Small Business Owners.'

The 'Busan Star Small Business Owners' program recognizes outstanding local small business owners who create added value in daily life and cultural sectors such as food, clothing, and housing?fields that have received relatively less attention compared to technology startups?and who have strong potential for future growth into corporate enterprises.

Since 2022, the city has annually discovered and selected 10 small businesses with high growth potential as Star Small Business Owners, providing comprehensive support to help them grow into 'representative brands of Busan.' With this year’s selection, a total of 30 Star Small Business Owners have been discovered.

For this year’s selection, the city held an open call in April, attracting applications from 174 local small businesses, resulting in a highly competitive ratio of about 17 to 1.

The final 10 companies were chosen through a three-stage process: the first round of document screening (April 18-23), the second round of on-site evaluations (April 25-May 9), and the third round of presentations (May 13-14). The selection criteria included the business owner’s startup story, management performance, and willingness to participate, with the highest scores according to the evaluation committee’s standards.

The 10 companies selected as Star Small Business Owners are: Gaheonjeong, Gungjung Haemultang Jo Ssi Jip, Daehyeon Sanghoe Co., Ltd., Baekro Anggeum Agricultural Corporation, Sonkkeut, Yuping, Toriatti, Tieut, Posegants, and Hitte Roastery.

The selected Star Small Business Owners will receive various benefits, including: certification as a Star Small Business Owner (for three years, with a certificate and plaque), growth strategy mentoring by experts in relevant fields, a growth support fund of 20 million KRW per company in the first year, preferential interest rates on special small business loans, and joint marketing support.

In the following year, additional support will be provided, such as in-depth consulting to help companies apply for national projects like the Ministry of SMEs and Startups’ ‘Strong Small Business Fostering Project.’

When using the special small business fund, companies can receive preferential interest rates (with a 2.0% interest subsidy) or preferential guarantee fees from the Busan Credit Guarantee Foundation (with a guarantee fee rate of 0.6%).

Among this year’s selected Star Small Business Owners, two particularly notable companies are Gungjung Haemultang Jo Ssi Jip and Daehyeon Sanghoe Co., Ltd.

Gungjung Haemultang Jo Ssi Jip, located in Nam-gu, is a local seafood stew restaurant operated by the second generation. They have commercialized their traditional menu, Palttuk-tang, as a ready-to-cook product, equipped a food manufacturing facility, and now sell online and supply to places like Incheon Airport and highway rest areas. Recently, they have also started exporting. The city selected them as a Star Small Business Owner, judging that their potential for further growth will increase with achievements such as obtaining certification for high-quality foods for seniors and expanding exports.

Daehyeon Sanghoe Co., Ltd., located in Suyeong-gu, started as a street vendor in the 1970s and has operated a traditional market mill for 50 years. Two daughters who previously worked for large companies joined the business, overcoming the decline of traditional markets and the limitations of the traditional mill business model focused on labor fees by branding their sesame oil and pioneering online sales channels. The city plans to support Daehyeon Sanghoe’s growth as a Star Small Business Owner by assisting with HACCP certification, securing automated facilities, entering large distribution companies or new sales channels, and exporting.

Companies selected as Star Small Business Owners last year achieved results such as increased online sales, entry into global distribution platforms, and expansion into various overseas markets with the city’s support. In particular, the average sales of the 10 companies increased by 24% compared to the previous year.

Shin Changho, Director of the Digital Economy Innovation Office of Busan, stated, “We will provide systematic support to the newly selected Star Small Business Owners to enhance their competitiveness and help them grow into entrepreneurial small businesses. We hope that a company representing Busan’s small business community will emerge from among the Star Small Business Owners, and that this program will become a leading model for the region.”