Navigating through the Korean Startup Scene Amidst COVID-19
It’s the dawn of a new decade, and 2020 has already made its mark as being one of the most memorable years of the century, and not on a positive note. With the Covid-19 pandemic causing widespread disruption on a global basis — the world as we know it, might never be the same.
To combat this, it’s up to entrepreneurs to adapt to these changes and build solutions that’ll leave the world a better place. To be able to build great companies, it sure helps being in the heat of the action, in an environment where infrastructure, support, and opportunities are present to foster entrepreneurship.
This is where Asia shines, in particular — South Korea.
Current State Of Korean Startup Scene
The wave of entrepreneurship in South Korea is thriving, and it’s worth noting that the Korean Government is committing generous amounts of funding to the startup ecosystem on a regular basis. As one of the fastest-growing developed nations in the world, South Korea has shown the grit and determination to adapt through adversity, and thrive well into the 4th Industrial Revolution.
The Korean Government realized that entrepreneurship was the key to ensure future economic success, thus it has committed support in:
- ensuring lower barriers of entry for entrepreneurs wanting to create a startup in Korea;
- provision of more technology-based jobs;
- generous funding arrangements;
- as well as provide training initiatives to employees to equip them with the skills needed in technology-based startups.
Coupled with the above, the focus on being a powerhouse in the advancement of innovative fields such as Blockchain, Biotech, Fintech, and IoT has garnered much-deserved acclaim worldwide.
Although the government support is commonly focused toward supporting Korean startups, the Korean startup ecosystem has been gradually incorporating more initiatives to promote foreign entrepreneurship locally.
Hence, with the needed support, and an attractive startup scene in place, foreigners have started to show lots of keen interest in setting up their own startup in South Korea.
However, with the current ensuing pandemic, COVID-19 — entrepreneurs need to be more flexible to adapt and pivot where needed to ensure survival of their startup.
The impact of Covid-19 has not been limited to causing widespread illness and resulting in countless deaths, but it has also impacted the world economy at an exorbitant price. It doesn’t matter if you are a Chaebol-type monopoly behemoth, a small “mom and pop” store, or a one person startup — the direct impact of Covid-19 on your business will be felt.
As Sun Tzu remarked: “Victory comes from finding opportunities in problems.” — some companies have done just that, turning a bad situation into their advantage, and thriving as a result. such as pizza delivery companies, online education and hosting of fitness classes.
Online web conferencing platform “Zoom” has doubled in share price since January 2020. These companies are experiencing geometric increases in volume, with stock prices doubling in a matter of mere months.
Others, however, have had to either shut down completely, suspend operations temporarily, or in the best case — be flexible and adapt to continue a regular working routine.
The situation looks less dire in Korea, for the country has not engaged in a lockdown, leaving Korean businesses to keep operating and generating much-needed revenue to keep the economy moving.
For startups, this means that teams can meet up at cafe’s, private shared office-spaces, universities, and keep working on their businesses while taking precautionary measures in preventing the spread of Covid-19.
Thus, while we wait for the world to get back into shape, let’s use this time productively, keep working on providing solutions and serving others.
Visa Options for Creating Your Own Startup
If you are interested in the Korean startup ecosystem, and you would like to start your company here — what visa options do you have?
(*There are multiple visa options for employees in startups — E7/F-series, but the focus here is on establishing your startup in Korea.)
Various visa options
> Investment Required:
D-8–1 Visa requires an investment of 100,000,000원 into a foreign investment corporation in Korea (approximately $81,133)
D-8–3 Visa requires a joint venture with a Korean firm and an investment of 100,000,000원
D-9–4 Visa is issued with an investment of 300,000,000원 (approximately $243,398)
> No Investment Required:
D-8–4 Visa requires that you change your current visa status to D-10 (work-seeking visa), which is valid for 6 months. Then, complete the OASIS Program to be eligible to start a company.
Useful Links And Channels To Follow
Seoul Startups Community (1100+ members)
Seoul Startups is an English-speaking startup community for expats and Koreans in Seoul. Discover a community of designers, developers, marketers and entrepreneurs interested in Korea.
Seoul Startup Hub (서울창업허브) has an official Youtube channel that posts videos about startup conferences, new innovative ideas, interviews with players in the startup space, as well as provide educational content related to startups. (The channel is mostly in Korea, but subtitles are useful in translating to English.)
John S. Kim (김동신) is the founder of Paprika Labs, which was acquired by GREE in 2012. He has a Korean and English blog where he discusses interesting topics on entrepreneurship. Korean | English
Demoday Korea is a great resource in getting to know all the different startups in Korea.
Other websites providing useful information on the Korean startup ecosystem (English & Korean): BeSuccess | Venture Square | OASIS Program
These links above are here to support you on your journey to become more acquainted with the Korean Startup environment, make connections with the right people, and execute your startup vision successfully.
Alas, even in an attractive startup environment with plentiful support in place, building a startup is NO easy feat, and you should dedicate all your time and energy to it at first to ensure survival.
Lastly, don’t be shy to reach out to the startup communities for help, if there’s one thing the Covid-19 situation has taught us — we’re all in this together.
Happy Building!
