Lecture Series by Entrepreneur Yum Jae-seung, Partner at Social Ventures "Sopoong Ventures"

Yum Jae-seung, a partner at Sopoong Ventures, delivered a lecture as the second speaker in the 2023-2 semester "Entrepreneurship Academy" hosted by the KUBS (Dean=Kim Sang yong)  Startup research institute (Director=Moon Jeong bien). The lecture took place on October 10th at 6 PM on the 2nd floor of the Business Main Building. The lecture series held by the Startup Station of the KUBS Startup research institute is an event in which various speakers are invited to share experience and advice about current business trends and startup strategies, under the theme of entrepreneurial spirit and innovation.   

The lecture began with an introduction to Yum Jae-seung, a notable entrepreneur who founded the crowdfunding platform Tumblbug in 2011. He secured investments from companies like Sopoong, Naver, and Strong Ventures. He has experienced exit, as Tumblbug was successfully sold to Idus in 2020, after its growth to becoming a leading crowdfunding platform in South Korea and a dominant brand in the field of culture and arts. Yum Jae-seung shared his journey, saying, "During my student years majoring in film, I wanted to make movies, but due to a lack of funds, I couldn't pursue film production. It was this challenging reality that led to the birth of Tumblbug," and “I thought that the unequal production environment of the previously existing system was a great obstacle that hindered creators from developing good ideas.” 

The lecture also delved into Sopoong Ventures' corporate vision. Established in 2008, Sopoong Ventures was South Korea's first social venture accelerator and impact investment firm. They invested in areas with significant social value, such as the sharing economy, agriculture, environment, disabilities, education, disaster response, and healthcare. Yum Jae-seung noted, "Since I met Sopoong Ventures as the first investor of Tumblbug, I've been closely involved in the company's growth and have a deep connection to Sopoong Ventures' investment philosophy and authenticity. Leveraging my experience from Tumblbug's founding to its exit, I joined the Sopoong to support innovative entrepreneurs and be part of their journey from nearest distance." 

Sopoong Ventures has been providing seed investments and acceleration to innovative social ventures since the concept of social ventures was relatively new. Their mission is to help social ventures continually create social value and, ultimately, maximize that social value. Sopoong Ventures has invested in 46 social venture companies to date, including Socar, Tumblbug, SpaceCloud, and Jaranada, with a combined company value of approximately 642.2 billion KRW. Yum Jae-seung emphasized, "We focus more on agreements and customized designs with the startup team rather than methods like GRI or IRIS when it comes to social value. We proceed with investments based on social missions concerning social values in collaboration with the startup teams." 

After the lecture, a Q&A session with students took place, where various questions and answers about entrepreneurship tips and insights from the industry were exchanged. Yum Jae-seung left advice for startup entrepreneurs, saying, "In today's society, where the democratization of technology has arrived, the era of mass production and consumption has faded. With a culture where anyone can become a creator and participate directly in production, if you have innovative ideas, go ahead and give it a try."