[Interview] KIM, Dohyeon, Head of the SME Research Center at the Platform, “Small business owners in crisis should make more active use of platforms” / Professor Kim Do-hyun (Department of Business Administration)
- 24.12.19 / 이정민
“The offline-based small business owners' contact points with customers are bound to be physically limited. Using the platform increases the scope of business expansion, including into the global market. It is also much more flexible than offline to quickly change items in a crisis.”
KIM, Dohyeon, head of the Platform SME Research Center at Kookmin University (Dean of the Kookmin University Global Startup Venture College and Professor of the School of Business) said the following about why digital merchants (D-SMEs) who use online platforms to do business should receive more attention, as the domestic self-employment environment is deteriorating, including the number of businesses closing down, vacancy rates, and delinquency rates on self-employed loans.
The Platform SME Research Center is a research institute under the Kookmin University Industry-Academic Cooperation Foundation that researches and educates digital merchants. The research center estimates that the number of digital merchants in Korea is about 1.7 million. This includes businesses that have entered online commerce platforms such as NAVER's Smart Store (KRW 212,000 ▲ 2,500 1.19%) and restaurants that use delivery platforms such as Baedal Minjok.
Kim said, “There should be a guide to help businesses know which platform is safer, as well as safety measures such as a fast settlement system,” regarding the “T-mepp incident (T-mon and WeMakePrice's large-scale settlement and refund suspension),” which recently caused damage to digital merchants. He also said, “It is time for society to think about how to support the safe business activities of digital merchants.” The following is a Q&A with Kim.
―It is a crisis for the self-employed.
“This is why we need to foster and pay attention to digital merchants. Online platforms have great potential for expansion. When we consider the range of customers that self-employed people can reach, offline is bound to be physically limited. Online has room to expand as the platform itself expands, and so does the business. When the platform expands globally, the number of points of contact can increase accordingly.
The platform is also a great help in terms of initial costs. For example, if a brand A is launched and does not do well, the company may want to try another brand, B. In the case of a startup, this is a pivot, and online is much easier and cheaper to make such changes.
In terms of initial costs, the platform is also a great help.
For example, if a brand A is launched and does not do well, you may want to try another brand B. This is like a pivot for a startup, and online is much easier and cheaper to make such changes.
If you think about the range of customers that self-employed people can reach, offline is bound to be physically limited.
Online, on the other hand, has room to expand as the platform itself expands. It is suitable for times of crisis because it allows us to respond more quickly and flexibly to social changes and changes in customer demand.”
―There are some who are worried about online businesses due to the Tmon and WeMakePrice incidents.
“Self-employed people cannot know all the information about which platform is safer to enter. We need indicators that can help them choose a platform. We also need to think about safety measures such as a quick settlement system. This should be viewed from the perspective of social responsibility. When conducting transactions between companies, they also evaluate creditworthiness and use surety insurance. It is true that the online platform is still weak. “There are some who complain about the insecurity of online business due to the Tmon and WeMakePrice incidents. ”Self-employed
―We estimate that there are 1.7 million active digital merchants.
“If you conduct direct business transactions with consumers through telecommunications media or advertising materials, you must register as a mail-order business. When the proportion of small business owners among businesses that have registered as mail-order businesses is estimated, 1,138,407 companies are considered digital merchants. For categories such as delivery, real estate, and accommodation, which can be entered without reporting the mail-order business, the number of businesses using the platform was estimated at 1.7 million based on actual survey data. This is a very large scale. I felt that I should pay more attention to digital merchants. In order for them to grow, we need to create an ecosystem that coexists with the platforms, which are their main stage of activity.”
―What is the Research Center doing to achieve this?
“We have been running a top-level course for the fourth year to help small business owners who have achieved digital transformation grow. 120 digital merchants with various growth stories participated, including the global brand 'd'Alba', the upcycling brand '119REO', 'Harinini Jukkumi', which grew to the Smart Store Big Power level by directly producing jukkumi (webfoot octopus) meal kits based on its know-how in offline stores, and 'Hoon Hoon Fisheries', which has sales of around 20 billion won. Big data expert Song Gil-young, KAIST professor of neuroscientist Kim Dae-sik, and other prominent speakers will be responsible for everything from market trends to practical training. Even after the completion of the program, the network will continue to operate actively.
Since February, it has also been holding monthly D-SME training sessions. The topics and curriculum are planned to provide content that is practically helpful by comprehensively reflecting the needs of business owners. For example, a lecture was held on the topic of “How to Select Government-Supported Projects” in relation to “funds,” which is one of the major challenges for small business owners. A lecturer with experience as a government-supported project judge shared how to write a business plan and practical preparation, and two of the businesses that participated in the training were selected for the Ministry of SMEs and Startups' 2024 Strong Small Business Growth Support Project. The research center will continue to support the growth of 1.7 million digital merchants through research and education.
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This content is translated from Korean to English using the AI translation service DeepL and may contain translation errors such as jargon/pronouns. If you find any, please send your feedback to kookminpr@kookmin.ac.kr so we can correct them.
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[Interview] KIM, Dohyeon, Head of the SME Research Center at the Platform, “Small business owners in crisis should make more active use of platforms” / Professor Kim Do-hyun (Department of Business Administration) |
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“The offline-based small business owners' contact points with customers are bound to be physically limited. Using the platform increases the scope of business expansion, including into the global market. It is also much more flexible than offline to quickly change items in a crisis.”
KIM, Dohyeon, head of the Platform SME Research Center at Kookmin University (Dean of the Kookmin University Global Startup Venture College and Professor of the School of Business) said the following about why digital merchants (D-SMEs) who use online platforms to do business should receive more attention, as the domestic self-employment environment is deteriorating, including the number of businesses closing down, vacancy rates, and delinquency rates on self-employed loans.
The Platform SME Research Center is a research institute under the Kookmin University Industry-Academic Cooperation Foundation that researches and educates digital merchants. The research center estimates that the number of digital merchants in Korea is about 1.7 million. This includes businesses that have entered online commerce platforms such as NAVER's Smart Store (KRW 212,000 ▲ 2,500 1.19%) and restaurants that use delivery platforms such as Baedal Minjok.
Kim said, “There should be a guide to help businesses know which platform is safer, as well as safety measures such as a fast settlement system,” regarding the “T-mepp incident (T-mon and WeMakePrice's large-scale settlement and refund suspension),” which recently caused damage to digital merchants. He also said, “It is time for society to think about how to support the safe business activities of digital merchants.” The following is a Q&A with Kim.
―It is a crisis for the self-employed.
“This is why we need to foster and pay attention to digital merchants. Online platforms have great potential for expansion. When we consider the range of customers that self-employed people can reach, offline is bound to be physically limited. Online has room to expand as the platform itself expands, and so does the business. When the platform expands globally, the number of points of contact can increase accordingly.
The platform is also a great help in terms of initial costs. For example, if a brand A is launched and does not do well, the company may want to try another brand, B. In the case of a startup, this is a pivot, and online is much easier and cheaper to make such changes. In terms of initial costs, the platform is also a great help. For example, if a brand A is launched and does not do well, you may want to try another brand B. This is like a pivot for a startup, and online is much easier and cheaper to make such changes. If you think about the range of customers that self-employed people can reach, offline is bound to be physically limited. Online, on the other hand, has room to expand as the platform itself expands. It is suitable for times of crisis because it allows us to respond more quickly and flexibly to social changes and changes in customer demand.”
―There are some who are worried about online businesses due to the Tmon and WeMakePrice incidents.
“Self-employed people cannot know all the information about which platform is safer to enter. We need indicators that can help them choose a platform. We also need to think about safety measures such as a quick settlement system. This should be viewed from the perspective of social responsibility. When conducting transactions between companies, they also evaluate creditworthiness and use surety insurance. It is true that the online platform is still weak. “There are some who complain about the insecurity of online business due to the Tmon and WeMakePrice incidents. ”Self-employed
―We estimate that there are 1.7 million active digital merchants.
“If you conduct direct business transactions with consumers through telecommunications media or advertising materials, you must register as a mail-order business. When the proportion of small business owners among businesses that have registered as mail-order businesses is estimated, 1,138,407 companies are considered digital merchants. For categories such as delivery, real estate, and accommodation, which can be entered without reporting the mail-order business, the number of businesses using the platform was estimated at 1.7 million based on actual survey data. This is a very large scale. I felt that I should pay more attention to digital merchants. In order for them to grow, we need to create an ecosystem that coexists with the platforms, which are their main stage of activity.”
―What is the Research Center doing to achieve this?
“We have been running a top-level course for the fourth year to help small business owners who have achieved digital transformation grow. 120 digital merchants with various growth stories participated, including the global brand 'd'Alba', the upcycling brand '119REO', 'Harinini Jukkumi', which grew to the Smart Store Big Power level by directly producing jukkumi (webfoot octopus) meal kits based on its know-how in offline stores, and 'Hoon Hoon Fisheries', which has sales of around 20 billion won. Big data expert Song Gil-young, KAIST professor of neuroscientist Kim Dae-sik, and other prominent speakers will be responsible for everything from market trends to practical training. Even after the completion of the program, the network will continue to operate actively.
Since February, it has also been holding monthly D-SME training sessions. The topics and curriculum are planned to provide content that is practically helpful by comprehensively reflecting the needs of business owners. For example, a lecture was held on the topic of “How to Select Government-Supported Projects” in relation to “funds,” which is one of the major challenges for small business owners. A lecturer with experience as a government-supported project judge shared how to write a business plan and practical preparation, and two of the businesses that participated in the training were selected for the Ministry of SMEs and Startups' 2024 Strong Small Business Growth Support Project. The research center will continue to support the growth of 1.7 million digital merchants through research and education.
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