SEOUL, KOREA - I moved to Seoul seven years ago and have had the chance to hold several experiences in the startup industry here. During that time, I have met a number of other people involved in the industry and have been called upon many times for help.
Whether it is to make an introduction, to offer advice, or to invest some time out of my day, I have learned it truly pays to help others as good things tend to come back in return.
Building a network
In the startup scene, it is a common belief that people are the difference in whether a startup succeeds or fails. I had a close friend who had toiled in the IT trenches of Korea years before me. He had a vision for what the Korean IT industry could be and started a coworking space called Seoul Space. During that time, it soon became a hub for entrepreneurs and investors and during my time there. While there, another Seoul Space co-founder and I tried to help two engineers with their latest service. During a brainstorming session, we came up with an idea for a new business and started a company called Spoqa.
Finding product market fit
We came up for the idea of Spoqa after a friend and I had been doing consulting work for a social commerce company. While the social commerce industry was booming, we felt the half off model would have difficulty sustaining itself in the long run. We ultimately decided to create a mobile loyalty program so consumers would not have to hold physical loyalty and stamp cards in their wallet. We added a social layer to the mobile loyalty program so we could truly call Spoqa “social commerce.” While I was at Spoqa, many people I had met would continue to approach me, and one of those people was a Venture Partner at Team Europe who would come to me for insights on the Korean startup industry.
Bringing a successful service abroad to Korea
Team Europe and Delivery Hero had been operating successful online food delivery ordering services in several countries and had their eyes on Korea. The question was how they could take their knowledge and experience and build a successful company in a market with established competitors. Delivery Hero already had product market fit and simply needed a team on the ground to execute. The Venture Partner hired me as I helped them with sharing my insights and those insights were knowledgeable enough. When we finally launched the service in Korea, I helped AppDisco by referring the marketing team to them. When I started Spoqa, one of our most effective marketing channels was AdLatte and this is when AppDisco asked me if I could help with their latest effort there.
Expanding a successful service out of Korea
While Delivery Hero wanted to bring its successful services from abroad into Korea, AppDisco wanted to do the oppsite; AppDisco wanted to take its domestic success and export it into the global market. Considering that such a daring feat has been accomplished by few, I was extremely interested in the company’s plan to launch globally. Moreover, I found the company’s youthful, vibrant culture a harmonious fit for me. A simple referral opened up a novel opportunity.
At AppDisco, I have the task of leading a team consisting of talented, creative people to plan and develop our products for the global market. AppDisco exhibited at the Mobile World Congress 2013 in Barcelona, to demonstrate our global version of AdLatte and Latte Screen, and returned with high praise and useful feedback. AdLatte is now not only a player in the Korean market, but also a global contender. Although the work is challenging, the learning curve is great. I feel thankful that just one simple help brought me here and take great pride in working with such great product and people.
While I did not know a single person in the field of IT when I first got to Korea, I quickly started to meet new people in the industry. My experiences here are all linked because I got myself out there, met people and offered to help without expecting anything in return. If I had one piece of advice for others, it would be to help others as much as you can because good things tend to have their way of coming back to you.
