[Start-up Campus ‘Start!’ ①] Opens on March
22; supports entire start-up and corporate development process of
commercializing ideas, attracting investment, and opening a business

◇ Gyeonggi Province opened Korea’s largest start-up
support organization, the Gyeonggi Start-up Campus, on March 22 with the goal
of creating an Asian version of Silicone Valley. ⓒ Gyeonggi G-News Yoo Je hoon

 “While we were preparing to expand into the North
American market, we had a lot to think about from legal issues to attracting
investment and public relations. After we moved into the Start-up Campus, however,
all these concerns were resolved pretty easily.” 

Park Soo-hong is CEO of Bagel
Labs, a start-up that opened last June. He plans to set this year as the first
year to expand his business. This is because he expects overseas expansion,
investment attraction, prototype production and other operations to take off after
entering the Gyeonggi Start-up Campus in March.  

Park said, “While running a start-up,
it wasn’t
easy to visit legal firms every single time I wanted some legal advice relating
to overseas business expansion.” Park added, “But here, we have an
overseas legal expert on campus so it has become much quicker to conduct
business since we can receive counsel whenever we need it.” 

Park also said that, “World renowned venture
capital is also on campus, so it provides an atmosphere in which we can talk to
investors easily while we come and go. We look forward to generating synergy
with the numerous IT corporations in Pangyo Techno Valley.” 

Everything necessary for a
company to grow has been gathered in one place, including support for
commercializing ideas, attracting investment, launching a start-up, and expanding
overseas. The Gyeonggi Start-up Campus, Korea’s largest start-up
development organization and a place where the dreams of start-ups are realized,
opened on March 22.

Gyeonggi Province invested KRW
160.9 billion and constructed three buildings including two eight-story
buildings along with one five-story building for the Start-up Campus on a 54,075㎡ site in
Sampyeong-dong of Bundang-gu in Seongnam City.  

With start-ups congregating to
cooperate with one another using the infrastructure and programs installed by
the provincial government, the Start-up Campus serves as a ‘start-up incubator’ that supports the
entire business process in order to help companies develop into world-caliber start-ups.
In other words, it offers an ecosystem for start-ups that is a clear reflection
of the shared market economy concept promoted enthusiastically by Governor Nam
Kyung-pil recently. 

◇ View of Building No. 1 which
houses the K-ICT Cloud Innovation Center, Big Data Center, Gyeonggi Big-Fi
Center, Creative Device Lab and more. ⓒ Gyeonggi G-News
Yoo Je-hoon

Building No. 1 currently
houses the K-ICT Cloud Innovation Center, which is affiliated with the Ministry
of Science, ICT and Future Planning, as well as the Big Data Center, Gyeonggi
Big-Fi Center, Korea Internet and Security Agency, National IT Industry
Promotion Agency, and the Creative Device Lab.  

Building No. 2 currently
houses world-renowned venture investment corporation Yozma Campus as well as
the Accelerator and the Patent Center. Most start-ups selected by Gyeonggi
Province will move into Building No. 2. 

Building No. 3 houses the
K-ICT Born2Global Center, which is affiliated with the Ministry of Science, ICT
and Future Planning in addition to venture investors and the Design Thinking
Center. In addition, more than 40 start-ups affiliated with Born2Global have
located here and began business operations.  

All three buildings are
connected via an internal access corridor with outdoor rest areas in between.
On the third floor, there is a large garden the size of three children’s playgrounds. There is
also a cafeteria that can accommodate 300 people simultaneously as well as other
welfare facilities such as the fitness center.  

Gyeonggi Province Governor Nam
Kyung-pil said, “The fundamental way to resolve youth unemployment
is to induce start-ups and use them as new growth engines for our economy.” Governor Nam explained,
“The
Start-up Campus will become a significant model for Korea’s first shared market
economy in which the dreams of our young entrepreneurs are realized based on infrastructure
built by Gyeonggi Province.”

Governor Nam also added, “The Start-up Campus is a
platform where freedom, in the spirit of university campuses, is alive.
Gyeonggi Province offers space and systems only; the rest is up to the
companies. Management will be entrusted to the private sector.” Governor Nam continued,
“We
will offer our fullest support in order to help the campus become Asia’s Silicone Valley and
the most famous hub for start-ups in Asia.” 

◇ Entrepreneurs work at the K-ICT
Born2Global Center that supports the overseas expansion of start-ups. ⓒ Gyeonggi G-News

■ 300 Start-ups
developed into global corporations 

Roughly 300 start-ups are
expected to enter the Start-up Campus. The campus will offer a wide range of
support until these companies develop into global corporations. Kakao Board Chairman
Kim Beom-soo, who achieved great start-up success with Hangame and Kakao, will
be the President of Start-up Campus. 

This is a place for new
opportunities for start-ups that possess ideas and technology yet have trouble
with capital, research space, or setting business direction.  

For this reason, competition among
companies to enter the Campus is very intense. A CEO of one resident company
said, “I
heard that the competition to get in was 20 or 30 to 1.” He continued, “There are many
corporations that want to enter this Campus because of the wide range of
support programs offered and because the rent is very inexpensive.” 

Future start-up entrepreneurs
aspiring to move into the start-up campus must pass an audition. Auditions
proceed with each supporting organization selecting start-ups they wish to
support. Depending on circumstances, the Start-up Campus is planning to hold an
overall audition. 

Auditions are held by
supporting organizations because the investors, accelerators, and experts at
each center all differ. When start-ups are selected based on auditions held by
each organization, these start-ups are provided with space for entry.  

For instance, floors 2 to 4 in
Building No. 3 of the Start-up Campus house the K-ICT Born2Global Center, which
is an affiliate of the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning; it offers
expert support for start-ups. Here, more than 40 start-ups are housed in the
same location. All those start-ups were selected based on auditions hosted by
Born2Global and developed by the K-ICT Born2Global Center.  

Gyeonggi Province is also planning
to hold its first audition this coming May to June for the selection of start-ups.

Start-ups eligible to enter
the Start-up Campus can receive a wide range of support that will help them
survive in the start-up environment.  

First of all, they can receive
start-up mentoring. The K-ICT Start-up Mentoring Center at the Start-up Campus
offers mentoring services to future entrepreneurs or to those in charge of start-ups
that are less than three years old in the ICT field regarding problems start-ups
experience during their early stages in terms of technology and management. 

Mentors are experienced
entrepreneurs with more than ten years of experience managing venture
companies. At present, there are 37 entrepreneurs from across the country
working on the campus. Mentoring is conducted via two methods: there’s the exclusive mentee method
in which two start-ups are selected each year for six months of intensive start-up
development mentoring; and there’s the open mentee method in which start-ups receive
help online upon request.  

K-ICT Start-up Mentoring
Center Director Choi Byeong-hee said, “Mentoring lowers the risk of failure for start-ups
by maturing their business capacity.” Director Choi added, “There are several
venture capital entrepreneurs in Pangyo, and these venture CEOs have been
invited to take part as mentors. We have plans to offer practical mentoring for
start-ups by utilizing these mentors.” 

Marketing Manager Jeong
Yoo-jin with Attocube – a start-up company attending the opening ceremony
– said, “The
biggest advantage is that we can receive mentoring with regards to real
business.” Choi
also added, “Since
we can receive some practical advice, I expect to reduce the trial-and-error process
during the early stages of managing my business.”

◇ The Creative Device Center is
where ideas from start-ups are transformed into physical products. ⓒ Gyeonggi G-News Yoo Je-hoon

■ Ideas
come to life in real products

The National IT Industry
Promotion Agency and other organizations help the production of prototypes
using the Creative Device Center, where ideas from start-ups are transformed into
physical products.  

The center offers space and
equipment that start-ups require when actualizing their ideas into prototypes.
It also screens items with considerable marketing potential and offers support
in terms of technical development and performance enhancement to turn ideas
into actual products.  

The Start-up Campus plans to
obtain technical advice from the National Information Society Agency, Gyeonggi
Content Agency, National IT Industry Promotion Agency, Korea Internet &
Security Agency, and KT in the field of Internet of Things (IoT), mobile 5G,
big data, and cloud services.  

Once the idea development and commercialization
phase is complete, entrepreneurs receive support for their start-up phase. With
regards to investment attraction and consultations necessary when start-ups
open and begin to grow, venture investment corporations such as Clearbrook from
the US, ISPC from China, Einav Hi-Tech Assets from Israel, and Bright Start
Partner from the UK will participate. These investment companies have created
KRW 40 billion in investment capital to date. 

Additionally, world-renowned
accelerators such as Yozma Campus and TEM the Moment as well as the Born2Global
Center under the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning will support
investment attraction and overseas expansion activities.  

Gyeonggi Province Science and
Technology Division Director Han Jeong-gil said, “The ultimate objective
of the Start-up Campus is to have start-ups housed inside the Campus begin
business operations.” Director Han explained, “The start-ups leave the campus
when they sell their ideas to a large business or when they successfully open
their own business. 

Most start-ups
that enter the Start-up Campus sign a three-year contract. If they do not
produce any results during the three years, Gyeonggi Province assesses their
future potential to determine whether or not to let them remain at the campus. 

◇ An exhibition hall will also be
opened for buyers and the public to see products created by start-up
entrepreneurs. ⓒ Gyeonggi G-News Yoo Je-hoon

■ Expect
synergies with Pangyo Techno Valley 

Additionally, the Start-up
Campus provides on-site interpretation and free translation services through professional
interpreters and translators so as to resolve language and communication
problems. Also, the Campus hosts weekly lectures on humanities subjects to
enhance creativity. There’s a daycare center near the campus to help
double-income families care for their children. 

During the start-up phase,
patent and licensing corporations help entrepreneurs with patents, legal
corporations help with incorporation processes, and accounting corporations
support accounting operations.  

Apart from these support
systems, another benefit of being on the Start-up Campus is that it is located
in Pangyo Techno Valley. With an expected opening date set for 2017, Pangyo
Techno Valley is currently home to 1,002 leading corporations in information technology,
biotechnology, and contents technology. This makes collaboration easier for
resident start-ups. Inexpensive rent is another advantage of being on campus. 

Song Jae-hyeon, CEO of
Musicanote – a start-up that develops programs that search for music contents – said, “The most attractive
feature for me was the fact that the Start-up Campus was located in Pangyo,
which is a mecca for cutting-edge technology.” Song explained, “University start-up
incubators, which are popular because of their inexpensive rent, ask tenants to
pay KRW 400,000 to 500,000 per month. Compared to that, here you only have to
pay roughly KRW 100,000 in maintenance costs per month.”

◇ Entrepreneurs meet at an open
space that resembles a café. ⓒ Gyeonggi G-News

The Start-up Campus has the
space and hosts events to help a variety of players in the creative economy,
such as start-up entrepreneurs and global investment corporations, to meet
freely and communicate with one another. At these venues and events, they
discuss future cooperation and conduct investment counselling sessions.  

On each floor, there are open
spaces that resemble cafes where people can take a break or talk to each other
freely. Also, there are small meeting rooms for roughly ten people as well as
places to practice briefing sessions or hold presentations and meetings for small-scale
investors. There are rest areas in each and every corner of the campus.  

In fact, you can see several
young start-up entrepreneurs gathered in small groups in the middle of the
lobby for a meeting or a conversation.  

Additionally, Buildings No. 1
and 2 have seminar rooms and conference halls with 200 seats for large
conferences or auditions.  

While she worked on her laptop
in the lobby, Kim Min-ah with a start-up called MTOV said, “I moved into the campus from
Daejeon today.”
Kim added, “The
building itself is so pleasant and clean. I think I’m going to get some good
work done. Compared to Daejeon where I only had my workspace, here there are
plenty of rest areas so it’s good.” 

Lim Jun-beom, a provincial
official who oversees Gyeonggi Start-up Campus affairs, said, “Offices take up only 50%
of the entire floor space here at the Start-up Campus.” Lim continued, “Since we’re using a wide area,
there’s
plenty of space for people to gather and it provides us with a pleasant
environment.” 

He also said, “The entire campus has
been designed in accordance with the principles of communication and
convergence. We’ll do our utmost to support our start-ups to help
them grow into world-caliber corporations like Google or Facebook.”

ⓒ Gyeonggi G-News | Lee Mi-young misaga@naver.com

http://gnews.gg.go.kr/news/news_detail.asp?number=201603221824592045C052&s_code=C052