Government Launches 'K-Brand Challenge' to Foster Beauty and Fashion Export Companies

[Financial News] The Ministry of SMEs and Startups said on the 26th that it will recruit small and medium-sized companies to participate in the 'K-Brand Challenge' until August 7.
The K-Brand Challenge is a program designed to identify small and medium-sized companies in consumer goods sectors with strong growth potential and help them develop into export companies with global competitiveness.
The program is open to small and medium-sized companies that own brands in beauty, fashion and lifestyle. Eligible firms are either domestic-market companies or early-stage exporters with annual exports of less than $5 million in the previous year.
The program began last year as the 'K-Beauty Creator Challenge' to discover promising small and medium-sized companies in the beauty sector and support their entry into global markets.
This year, the ministry expanded support to the fashion and lifestyle sectors, reflecting strong overseas interest in K-Consumer Goods, and also changed the program's name.
Among the applicants, three companies from each sector, or nine in total, will be selected through preliminary, semifinal and final rounds.
Selected companies will be given opportunities to take part in pop-up stores operated in South Korea and overseas, as well as export and investment consultations with foreign buyers and investors.
They will also receive support for online marketing, export vouchers and obtaining overseas certifications, along with priority selection for export support programs. Startups will be granted benefits such as preferential treatment in the Early-Stage Startup Package program.

[email protected] Kim Hyun-cheol Reporter