Gwangju Nam-gu Increases Alley-type Shopping Districts to Promote Local Alley Businesses

Nam-gu, Gwangju Metropolitan City, is set to designate five new alley-type shopping districts within its jurisdiction, including the Gunbun-ro area, to revitalize the local economy and support small business owners.

According to Nam-gu on the 4th, the current alley-type shopping districts in the area include two locations: Baegun Daeseong Market, designated as the first in 2021, and Yongdae-ro Shopping District in Bangnim-dong, which opened as the second in 2023.

The new alley-type shopping districts to be designated this time include Gunbun-ro Shopping District, Sajik Tonggita Street, Baegun Square Street Food Zone, Bongseon-dong Food Alley, and Baegun-dong Food Alley.

With these five additional designations, the total number of alley-type shopping districts in the area will increase to seven.

The reason the district office is significantly expanding the number of alley-type shopping districts is to inject new vitality into the challenging alley economy.

In particular, the prolonged economic downturn combined with rising prices has intensified the nationwide issue of shrinking alley markets, and the management conditions of small business owners, who have tightened their belts, have not significantly improved.

To find a breakthrough in this crisis and provide more support benefits to local small business owners, Nam-gu recently partially amended related ordinances to lower the entry barriers for alley-type shopping district designation.

Previously, to be designated as an alley-type shopping district, there had to be at least 30 stores within an area of 2,000㎡, but with this ordinance amendment, even if there are 15 or more stores within the same area, the district can be designated as an alley-type shopping district.

Once designated as an alley-type shopping district, the area can circulate Onnuri gift certificates and participate in government-led facility modernization contest projects.

Currently, Nam-gu is in discussions with merchants in five areas, including Gunbun-ro, regarding the designation of alley-type shopping districts, and plans to proceed with additional designations starting in the second half of this year after on-site inspections.

A Nam-gu official stated, "If additional alley-type shopping districts are designated, these shopping districts will have opportunities to participate not only in government-led facility modernization projects but also in various other initiatives," adding, "We will do our best to promote projects to strengthen the competitiveness of alley-type shopping districts in the area."