SEMAS to go all-out to support small businesses’ overseas expansion

Chairman Park Sung-hyo. [Photo by Lee Seung-hwan]

Park Sung-hyo, chairman of South Korea’s Small Enterprise and Market Service (SEMAS), vowed on Monday to focus on discovering outstanding small business owners and helping them expand overseas.

“In order for small businesses to grow, it is essential to expand beyond the Korean market and find new sales channels overseas,” Park said in an interview with Maeil Business Newspaper on Monday to mark his second anniversary in office.

SEMAS is a government-affiliated agency established to support micro enterprises, traditional markets, and stores to revitalize the market economy. Its results include approximately $5.2 million in export support for small businesses in 2023 and is making even greater efforts this year.

It opened DooK’N-DooK‘N a dedicated offline beauty store for small businesses, on August 29th, 2024, at the Vincom Mega Mall Royal City in Hanoi, Vietnam. This 100-square-meter store sells over 300 items, including cleansing products and basic cosmetics, and the products on display are reviewed every three months for potential replacement.

SEMAS also supports small businesses in entering overseas e-commerce platforms. A notable example is the functional moisturizing shampoo Saranara, which became highly popular on eBay Japan and hitting sales of over 1 billion won ($747,406) in just over a year thanks to SEMAS’ support.

The agency also provides education programs and funding for Korean e-commerce ventures. It collaborated with Kakao Corp. in 2023 to provide one-on-one digital capability enhancement training for small business owners in 100 traditional markets, which got an enthusiastic response.

A similar program is being offered in another 100 markets in 2024. Park mentioned a case where a traditional market vendor created a Kakao chat room with regular customers after receiving digital training to greet them each morning and introduce new products, which significantly boosted sales.

Park, who began his public service via the 23rd Administrative Exam, has held various positions, including Mayor of Seo District in Daejeon, National Assembly member, and Mayor of Daejeon, gaining extensive experience in both government and politics.

He is highly regarded for his deep understanding of the challenges faced by small business owners and is particularly focusing on ensuring the smooth implementation of the Comprehensive Plan for Micro-Businesses and the Self-Employed, which was announced by the government in July 2024.

He also recently created a field inspection team composed of personnel from its headquarters and regional offices to ensure that small business owners, who are struggling with economic downturns and high-interest rates, receive government support quickly.