Kakao Corporation’s ‘Project Dan-Gol’ Delivers Results... Supporting Digital Transformation of Local Businesses

Kakao Corporation has released the 2025 operational results of 'Project Dan-Gol,' an initiative supporting the digital transformation of small business owners. This year, Kakao Corporation expanded its support to cover entire regions, strengthening customized education and marketing programs to revitalize local economies and enhance the digital capabilities of small businesses.
Launched in 2022, 'Project Dan-Gol' is Kakao Corporation’s flagship mutual growth program, providing digital transformation education and both online and offline promotional support directly to traditional markets and local shopping districts. This year, Kakao Corporation visited 59 business districts nationwide to deliver training, with approximately 1,265 merchants participating—a 43% increase from last year. To date, a total of 4,112 merchants from 286 business districts (251 markets and 35 shopping streets) have taken part in the program, and over 4,000 KakaoTalk Channels have been established. As a result, around 990,000 customers have registered as channel friends, laying the foundation for online communication.
To further support communication between small businesses and their customers, Kakao Corporation also operates the 'KakaoTalk Channel Message Sending Support' program. This year, more than 7 billion KRW in support funds were distributed, bringing the cumulative total to 33.4 billion KRW. So far, over 74,000 small business owners have benefited from the program. Any small business owner with annual sales under 1 billion KRW can apply at any time through the official Kakao Project Dan-Gol KakaoTalk Channel.
Introduced for the first time this year, the 'Dangol Bus' played a significant role in energizing local business districts. This free shuttle bus, connecting local businesses with customers, began operating in Mokpo on September 18 and ran for 46 days across four regions—Gongju, Osong, and Mungyeong—making 104 trips. During this period, more than 2,400 passengers visited local business districts, contributing to increased sales. Additionally, new region-specific programs were introduced, including the operation of local youth tutors (Digital Supporters), the consumption promotion event 'Dangol Day,' and Live Commerce training to expand online sales channels, all of which received positive feedback.
To mark the end of the project, performance-sharing events were held in nine key regions—Namyangju, Mungyeong, Wonju, Anseong, Mokpo, Iksan, Gongju, Chungju, and Seongbuk District, Seoul—where results and best practices were shared.
Kakao Corporation plans to further strengthen 'Project Dan-Gol' next year by expanding the regions and programs it supports. The company will enhance digital capability-building programs, such as AI-based training, create more opportunities to share success stories, and extend the operation of the Dangol Bus to attract more visitors to local areas.
Kakao Corporation CEO Jeong Shin-a stated, “Through Project Dan-Gol, we have worked to establish a digital foundation for small businesses. Moving forward, we will continue to support local economies and small business owners with mutually beneficial initiatives, leveraging technology and our platform, including advanced AI training.”
yjjoe@fnnews.com Jo Yoon-joo Reporter