Inauguration Ceremony Held at Government Seoul Office on the 23rd
Plan to Announce Results by October
The Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced on the 23rd that the launch ceremony of the ‘Delivery Platform-Merchant Win-Win Council’ was held at the Government Seoul Office.
On the 23rd, participants from both sides are taking a commemorative photo at the launch ceremony of the Delivery Platform-Merchant Win-Win Council held at the Government Seoul Office Annex in Jongno-gu, Seoul. [Photo by Yonhap News]
The launch of the Win-Win Council is one of the measures included in the ‘Comprehensive Measures for Small Business Owners and Self-Employed’ announced by the government on the 3rd. The council was established to bring together delivery platforms and merchants on delivery platforms to devise reasonable ways to alleviate the burdens on merchants.
Merchants are currently experiencing significant burdens from using delivery platforms, to the extent that continuing their business is difficult. In the food service industry, small businesses with annual sales under 100 million KRW account for 52.5%, indicating a high proportion of small-scale operators. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the overall loan amounts for small business owners increased significantly, and the closure rate rose, causing many difficulties. In particular, merchants on delivery platforms perceived that the food delivery market situation worsened last year compared to the period when non-face-to-face transactions were activated. According to a survey on the transaction status of small businesses on online platforms conducted by the Korea Federation of SMEs, 52.3% of merchants responded that ‘the delivery market has deteriorated.’
Accordingly, related government departments shared the recognition of the need to alleviate the burdens on merchants using delivery platforms, and decided to launch the Win-Win Council where delivery platforms and merchants can gather to seek win-win solutions.
The launch ceremony was attended by delivery platforms such as Baedal Minjok, Coupang Eats, Yogiyo, and Ttaenggyeoyo, as well as merchant organizations including the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business, Korea Foodservice Industry Association, National Franchise Owners Association, and National Merchants Federation. Additionally, special committee members from the Fair Trade Commission, Ministry of Economy and Finance, and Ministry of SMEs and Startups, as well as public interest committee members such as Professor Lee Jeong-hee from the Department of Economics at Chung-Ang University and Deputy Director Lee Dong-joo of the Small and Medium Business Research Institute, participated. The related departments will support the discussion process of the Win-Win Council, and the public interest committee members, as experts related to small business owners, food service, and consumers, will provide mediation opinions when coordination between delivery platforms and merchants is needed. Professor Lee Jeong-hee was also appointed as the chairperson of the Win-Win Council.
At the launch ceremony, along with the operation plan of the Win-Win Council, a free discussion was held on topics proposed by four associations and organizations prior to the council’s launch, including ‘measures to reduce burdens such as commissions,’ ‘measures to enhance transparency of commissions,’ ‘improvement of unfair practices,’ ‘activation of public delivery apps,’ ‘preparation of institutional measures,’ and ‘resolution of other difficulties.’
Chairperson Lee Jeong-hee of the Win-Win Council said at the launch ceremony, “I feel a heavy responsibility for the social interest surrounding delivery platforms and the high burdens on merchants,” and added, “I will do my best from a neutral standpoint to ensure that reasonable win-win measures can be prepared through this Delivery Platform-Merchant Win-Win Council.”
The Win-Win Council plans to produce results by October to quickly resolve the difficulties faced by merchants.
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