Yoon Announces Small Business Measures at Livelihood Forum
Delivery Fees for Small Merchants Reduced by 30%, Traditional Markets 0%
Mentions Baek Jong-won, Promises "Fostering Private Commercial Planners"
President Yoon Suk-yeol is holding a public discussion forum with citizens on the theme of "Small Business Owners and Self-Employed Entrepreneurs Running Again, Vibrant Neighborhood Commercial Districts" at the Art Center Goma in Gongju, Chungnam on the 2nd. Photo by Yonhap News
President Yoon Suk-yeol announced support measures for small business owners and self-employed workers on the 2nd. Over the next three years, the burden of delivery fees for small merchants will be reduced by more than 30%, and relief measures for no-shows and malicious comments will be strengthened. Additionally, private commercial district planners will be nurtured to expand local attractions like Yesan Market, which was developed by Baek Jong-won, CEO of The Born Korea.
On the 2nd, President Yoon presided over the "Public Discussion on Livelihood with the People" held at the Art Center Goma in Gongju, Chungnam, where he presented these support measures for small business owners and the self-employed. The discussion was held under the theme "Small Business Owners and Self-Employed Running Again, Vibrant Alley Commercial Districts."
Expansion of Delivery Fee Support... 30% Reduction for Small Merchants
President Yoon emphasized that small business owners make up 95% of all companies and 46% of employment, serving as the foundation and backbone of the Korean economy. He stressed that for them to regain vitality and work vigorously is also the way to overcome polarization.
He announced that next year's budget exclusively for small business owners and the self-employed will be the largest ever at 5.9 trillion won. Through this, he emphasized that proactive domestic demand and consumption stimulation measures will be devised to empower small business owners and the self-employed.
The delivery fees, which are a heavy burden for small business owners and the self-employed, will be reduced by more than 30% over three years, focusing on small stores. For traditional markets, a 0% rate will be applied. Also, the current mobile gift certificate fees, ranging from 5% to 14%, will have their rates lowered and the long settlement periods shortened through a win-win plan to be prepared within the year.
President Yoon said, "These days, the biggest burden for self-employed people is delivery fees," pointing out, "In addition to the basic delivery cost, they have to pay an average of 9.8% commission, which is like the tail wagging the dog."
President Yoon Suk-yeol is entering the public discussion forum titled "Small Business Owners and Self-Employed Running Again, Vibrant Alley Markets" held at Art Center Goma in Gongju, Chungnam on the 2nd. Photo by Yonhap News Agency
Strengthening Relief for No-Shows and Malicious Reviews
In particular, President Yoon said that relief for the four major damages to small business owners’ livelihoods, including no-shows and malicious reviews/comments, will be strengthened.
Regarding no-shows, considering the reality that damages reach 4.5 trillion won annually, President Yoon explained that a reservation deposit system that both consumers and sellers can agree on will be established, along with consumer dispute resolution standards.
To resolve the problem of malicious reviews and comments, 90 nationwide reporting and counseling centers will be established for online platform companies. If reviews and comments are found to be malicious, swift deletion or masking measures will be taken in cooperation with the platform companies.
President Yoon said, "Many business owners are struggling these days due to no-shows where customers make reservations and disappear, or malicious reviews that even force stores to close," emphasizing, "We will improve the reservation deposit system and dispute resolution standards and pay great attention to spreading a proper reservation culture."
For businesses that have faithfully notified the ban on disposable products inside stores, even if customers use disposable products inside the store due to a change of mind and are caught, measures will be taken to exempt the business owners from fines.
Yoon: "Nurturing Private Commercial District Planners Like Baek Jong-won"
Efforts will also be accelerated to revitalize local commercial districts.
President Yoon mentioned the commercial districts around Jemincheon in Gongju and Seongsimdang in Daejeon, explaining, "By 2027, we will nurture 1,000 private commercial district planners to creatively plan development strategies for commercial districts."
He said, "Mr. Baek Jong-won completely transformed Yesan Market through private commercial district planning," adding, "We will nurture private commercial district planners who will take charge of such work."
In his closing remarks, President Yoon explained, "It is important that local commercial district planning and development be led by the private sector rather than public officials," and "The government needs to support such private-led initiatives."
He continued, "It would be great if planners like Mr. Baek Jong-won have creative ideas," and said, "When I turn on the television and see Mr. Baek not only cooking but also renovating a countryside seaside store, it’s so interesting that I can’t switch channels."
In addition, President Yoon announced plans to establish 10 "local makerspaces" nationwide, creative spaces where local entrepreneurs, residents, and merchants can actively engage and exchange ideas for regional commercialization and commercial district inflow, similar to France’s "local workshops."
President Yoon Suk-yeol is holding a public discussion on livelihood titled "Small Business Owners and Self-Employed Running Again, Vibrant Neighborhood Commercial Districts" with the people at Art Center Goma in Gongju, Chungnam on the 2nd. Photo by Yonhap News
Yoon’s Full-Scale Move to Overcome Polarization
The Presidential Office stated, "This discussion was President Yoon’s first livelihood activity after emphasizing 'overcoming polarization' at the first senior secretaries meeting of the second half of his term," adding, "Starting with directly listening to voices from the field and discussing support measures, he has fully launched his efforts to overcome polarization, which is a national goal for the latter half of his term."
President Yoon also emphasized that consumption must revive to stimulate domestic demand and that the government plans to actively support this.
He said, "Modern capitalism and market economy societies are mass production and mass consumption societies, and the most important thing is consumption," adding, "It is not enough to just support self-employed people and small business owners; the government must actively enable people to go out and spend money."
About 80 people attended the livelihood discussion, including small business owners, commercial district planners, academics and experts, and government and local government officials. From the Presidential Office and government, Minister Oh Young-joo of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, Chairman Han Ki-jung of the Fair Trade Commission, Chairman Kim Byung-hwan of the Financial Services Commission, First Vice Minister Kim Beom-seok of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, and Chief Secretary Jeong Jin-seok of the Presidential Office were present.
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