“Unleashing Creativity through Passion and Ingenuity” – Taling CEO Kim Yoonhwan’s Entrepreneurship Academy Lecture  

On Novemeber 14th, KUBS (Dean = Kim Sang Yong) Startup Research Institute (Director = Moon Jung Bin) led the Entrepreneurship Academy for the second semester. As the third speaker of the Entrepreneurship Academy lecture series, CEO Kim Yoon Hwan of Taling stepped forward. Under the theme “The Rise and Fall of Startups,” Kim Yoon Hwan shared his journey from university entrepreneurship to leading a company with an investment of over 20 billion won. Taling, founded in November 2016, is a talent-sharing platform that offers both online and offline classes. With 1.5 million members and 23,000 tutors, Taling has successfully attracted over 20 billion won in investments with a method where individuals transform their unique talents into content and conduct distinctive lectures.  

Taling, born out of the university's 1st ChuChu Enterprise Program, debuted through the university's startup incubation program, presenting their products and services at the university's startup demo day called 'ChuChu Day.' CEO Kim Yoon Hwan vividly recounted his entrepreneurial journey that began during his university years, expressing the efforts invested in student entrepreneurship. Kim reflected, saying "After I came to Korea University after 4 attempts, I joined as a 2012 student in the Department of Political Sciences with the courage and audacity of 'there's nothing I can't do,' initiating entrepreneurship." He further reminisced, "Looking back, during my university days, when Taling had just started, the marketing methods we attempted were the closest experiences to reaching our customers." 

CEO Kim Yoon-hwan successfully expanded the scale of the startup, achieving significant growth as a young entrepreneur. However, beneath this leap lies the traces of intense deliberation during the early days of entrepreneurship as a university student, aiming to minimize business costs and generate maximum managerial efficiency. Taling initiated its marketing efforts by directly promoting to students within Korea University. With the belief that "even if the instructor lacks expertise, there will surely be demand due to its cost-effectiveness," CEO Kim Yoon Hwan launched the business and as demand began to grow within Korea University, he expanded the business to universities in Seoul. Despite being a CEO not even proficient in Excel, he collaborated with computer science friends and attempted development through outsourcing. Kim Yoon Hwan expressed, "The experimental attempts to reduce business costs during my university days, even if they were just a few pennies, turned out to be much more creative and effective ideas than those attempted after the success of the business." He added, "I think the passion and ingenuity unique to university student in the twenties, unaware of many things, played a crucial role in achieving success." 

Despite the subsequent success and growth of Taling, the business faced challenges faced during the COVID-19 pandemic. Kim Yoon Hwan revealed, "After barely overcoming a hacking issue, we faced a situation where members who had paid for offline classes demanded refunds, and I even contemplated shutting down the business." To cope with the crisis, to recover from a monthly deficit of 700 million won and reach the breakeven point, Taling had to undergo a large-scale restructuring, reducing its workforce from over 90 employees to 15. Kim Yoon Hwan confessed, "Because I didn’t want my business and the efforts of my 20s to become a disgrace, in times of crisis, I used my own money to pay the tutors' salaries.” 

Continuing, he expressed, "Businesses cannot always thrive continuously," emphasizing that experiencing ups and downs is inevitable in the business world. “It seems that enduring these challenges with the mindset that facing setbacks is a natural part of the entrepreneurial journey has allowed Taling to persist until now.” Overcoming the pain of a resignation recommendation, Taling transformed into a 10-member company in 2023, successfully pioneering new markets and emerging as a thriving EduTech enterprise. Since the fourth quarter of last year, Taling has strengthened its customized Business-to-Business (B2B) services for corporate employees, offering a variety of well-being programs, including fitness, hobbies, and self-development, to hundreds of companies remotely. They achieved a turnaround to profitability in the first half of this year, and in June, monthly operating profits exceeded 100 million won for the first time. 

Concluding the lecture, CEO Kim Yoon Hwan offered heartfelt advice to aspiring entrepreneurs that attended. He stated, "Starting a business at a young age is truly beneficial. In your 20s, you have the energy to endure even when stable cash flows are not guaranteed in the early stages of a business." Continuing, he advised, "Relying on money to solve every business challenge can lead to the disappearance of creativity." He encouraged not forgetting that many creative ideas can emerge while contemplating how to proceed with the business without excessive reliance on finances. Additionally, he urged the creation of a healthy organizational culture infused with positive energy, striving to unfold one's unique ideas to the best of their ability.