75% of Small Business Owners in Gwangju Support Attracting Complex Shopping Malls

Impact on Local Businesses: Citizens 'Positive' · Small Business Owners 'Negative'
Demand for Point Local Currency Conversion and Social Insurance Support
Gwangju City Council Conducts Survey of 1,000 Citizens and Small Business Owners

Opinions on attracting small business owners and complex shopping malls

More than 7 out of 10 small business owners in the Gwangju area were found to support the attraction of complex shopping malls within the region. Regarding the impact of complex shopping malls on the local commercial district, general citizens generally had a ‘positive’ view (56.40 points), whereas small business owners showed a somewhat ‘negative’ perspective (34.42 points).

According to a public opinion survey released on the 1st by the Gwangju City Council’s Administrative and Autonomy Committee (Chairman An Pyeonghwan), 40.7% of local small business owners expressed ‘support for attracting one mall but opposition to attracting three,’ 35.0% were ‘in favor of attracting all three malls,’ and 24.3% were ‘opposed to attraction itself.’ The survey results indicate that over 75% of small business owners support the attraction of complex shopping malls.

Regarding the ‘win-win measures for small business owners,’ the overall necessity score among citizens was 64.55 points, with ‘converting some purchase points to local currency’ scoring the highest at 67.61 points, followed by ‘support for revitalizing commercial districts linked to old downtown areas’ at 66.93 points. In contrast, the overall necessity score among small business owners was 73.83 points, with ‘support for small business owners’ social insurance premiums’ scoring 82.00 points and ‘expansion of guarantee support scale’ scoring 80.00 points.

Regarding the question of ‘business resource sharing’ for promoting win-win measures for small business owners, citizens scored 55.11 points and small business owners 55.42 points out of 100, indicating that both groups believe that complex shopping mall operators should bear more responsibility than Gwangju City.

The ‘satisfaction with the complex shopping mall promotion project’ averaged 58.57 points among citizens, which was relatively high, but there were also negative views about the overall attraction and promotion process. Small business owners showed a predominantly negative opinion with 37.00 points. Regarding reasons for negativity, 45.3% of citizens selected ‘slow project progress,’ while 72.5% of small business owners chose ‘insufficient communication with small business owners.’

An Pyeonghwan, Chairman of the Gwangju City Council’s Administrative and Autonomy Committee, stated, “This was a good opportunity to understand the awareness and satisfaction of Gwangju citizens and small business owners regarding the promotion of complex shopping malls. We will actively reflect the opinions of citizens and small business owners on win-win measures in our legislative activities while sharing these survey results with Gwangju City, and strive to ensure that the complex shopping malls are promoted fairly and swiftly.”

Meanwhile, this public opinion survey was conducted by Poll Insight Co., Ltd. on behalf of the Gwangju City Council from the 4th to the 18th of last month. It surveyed 700 men and women aged 18 or older residing in Gwangju (with a 95% confidence level and a sampling error of ±3.7 percentage points) and 300 small business owners aged 20 or older with business locations in Gwangju (with a 95% confidence level and a sampling error of ±5.65 percentage points) through telephone interviews and online surveys. Detailed results can be found on the Gwangju City Council website.