Bucheon Small Giants Achieve 11% Sales and 14% Employment Growth... Analysis of 14 Companies' Performance Over 3 Years

On the 16th, Bucheon City in Gyeonggi Province announced that an analysis of the three-year certification period of 14 companies selected as Bucheon Small Giants in 2021 showed an average sales growth of 11% and a 14% increase in job creation.

Bucheon Small Giants is a program operated since 2014 to discover small but strong promising SMEs with growth potential, boost their morale, and nurture them as representative local companies. So far, 91 companies have been selected as Small Giants.

The city analyzed performance based on companies' financial statements, including sales, capital and assets, export performance, and employment status before and after the Bucheon Small Giants certification period (July 2021 to June this year). As a result, the growth trend of Bucheon Small Giants was clearly evident in 2023 compared to 2020.

The total annual sales amounted to 243.9 billion KRW, showing an average growth of 11%, and the number of employees increased by 14%, from 659 to 751. Total assets grew by an average of 36%, and total capital increased by 41%, with 10 out of the 14 companies showing remarkable performance. Additionally, 92 new hires contributed to job creation.

However, due to the global economic downturn, export performance grew by an average of only 2.6%, and exports of 10 out of the 14 companies slightly decreased. The city explained that considering the COVID-19 period (2021?2022), this is a meaningful growth.

In a survey of Small Giants, 97.2% expressed satisfaction, stating that the program helped improve internal and external recognition, capital management investment, and securing excellent personnel.

Bucheon City has supported Small Giants by expanding the limit of SME development funds and offering preferential interest rates over three years, providing 440 million KRW in loan interest support to 10 companies with loans totaling 14.9 billion KRW. Market support worth 90 million KRW was provided to six companies.

Mayor Jo Yong-ik said, "Bucheon Small Giants have achieved meaningful results beyond the recession," and added, "We will continue to actively support these Small Giants so that they can grow into companies representing not only Bucheon but also the Republic of Korea."

Meanwhile, the recruitment for Bucheon Small Giants this year is scheduled for early October, with final selection planned for December after document evaluation, on-site verification, and PT evaluation.