Recently, the Ingenuity Lab of the University of Nottingham Ningbo China successfully held a roundtable event entitled "From YouTube Content Creator to Cross-Border Contents Business Entrepreneur: Strategies, Insights, and Success Stories". The event invited Mr Dongrin Kim, the co-founder and CEO of Rebel Corporation, a company that specializes in cross-border webtoons and web novels, and his entrepreneurial partner, who brought profound insights and valuable experience sharing with the audience their entrepreneurial experience.
近日，宁波诺丁汉大学创客实验室成功举办了一场题为“从YouTube内容创作者到跨国内容业务企业家：策略、洞察力和成功故事 ”的圆桌活动。本次活动有幸邀请到了跨边界网络漫画和网络小说公司Rebel Corporation的联合创始人兼首席执行官Dongrin Kim及其创业伙伴，他们以自己的传奇创业经历为现场观众带来了一场宝贵的经验分享。
Please scroll down for the English version.
张永勋 博士
Dongrin Kim
然而，创业之路并非一帆风顺。在YouTube上取得成功后，Dongrin Kim和他的伙伴决定前往越南发展，并开设一家越南餐厅。这一决定背后，是他们扎实的市场调研和对越南商业环境的深刻洞察。他们发现，越南的咖啡店和餐饮业具有巨大的发展潜力，尤其是外国游客聚集区。
在越南的创业过程中，Dongrin Kim和他的团队遇到了诸多困难和挑战。由于预算有限，他们最初只能在一家越南的咖啡店打工，从早到晚地努力工作，与工作人员建立友谊，并深入了解越南的咖啡制作技艺。同时，他们也积极积攒人脉和经验，为开设自己的餐厅做准备。经过数月的寻找和中介的帮助，他们终于在一个外国游客聚集区的主街道上找到了一家小店铺。
作为跨国创业者，Dongrin Kim深知适应和融合的重要性。他们并没有简单照搬当地的美食，而是结合自己的特色和创新精神，设计出了具有自己风格的菜单。通过学习和理解越南的市场和文化，他们不断地调整自己的商业策略，以满足当地顾客的需求和偏好。这种灵活性和创新能力，成为了他们成功的关键。
然而，餐厅的开业初期并不顺利，第一天只有50美元的营业额。面对这样的困境，Dongrin Kim并没有放弃。他敏锐地发现了Tripadvisor等在线平台对于吸引顾客的重要性，于是开始专注于提高在线评价和排名。经过不懈的努力，他们的餐厅在Tripadvisor上的排名逐渐上升，顾客开始络绎不绝地前来品尝美食。最终，餐厅在两个月后实现了盈利，他们也迎来了事业的转折点。
在分享中，Dongrin Kim还提到了他们在疫情期间如何灵活应对挑战、抓住机遇的经历。当餐厅业务受到严重影响时，他们果断转向网络动漫行业，利用自己的粉丝基础和创新能力，开发出了新的商业模式。通过雇佣程序员和开发者构建自己的IP，进行故事规划和开发，他们成功地在日本和美国市场取得了突破。这一过程中，他们不仅展示了非凡的灵活性和创新能力，更展现了对市场趋势的敏锐洞察和把握能力。最近，他的团队获得了92亿韩元的融资，将用于打造一家全球性的内容公司。
在活动的最后环节，Dongrin Kim和他的创业伙伴Sungrak Choi还与现场观众进行了互动交流。他们分享了自己的创业感悟和经验教训，鼓励大家在面对困难和挑战时保持创新思维和灵活应变的能力。他们的分享不仅为现场观众提供了宝贵的经验借鉴，更激发了大家对于创业和创新的热情和动力。
Sungrak Choi
A Korean YouTuber's Entrepreneurial Journey in Vietnam
Recently, the Ingenuity Lab of the University of Nottingham Ningbo China successfully held a roundtable event entitled "From YouTube Content Creator to Cross-Border Contents Business Entrepreneur: Strategies, Insights, and SuccessStories". The event invited Mr Dongrin Kim, the co-founder and CEO of Rebel Corporation, a company that specializes in cross-border webtoons and web novels, and his entrepreneurial partner, who brought profound insights and valuable experience sharing with the audience their entrepreneurial experience.
The event was hosted by Dr Luke Younghoon Chang, Associate Professor in Marketing & Analytics at the Nottingham University Business School China. At the beginning of the event, Mr Kim first reviewed his entrepreneurial starting point as a YouTuber who loves creation. Initially, he and his two entrepreneurial partners produced street interview content, inviting passersby to taste their Vietnamese coffee products. This novel and interesting video quickly became popular on the internet, from a few people watching at the beginning to 100,000 views in a week, and now has millions of subscribers. Mr Kim and his team have achieved remarkable success on YouTube. During this process, they not only accumulated a large fan base but also inspired their passion and motivation for entrepreneurship.
However, the entrepreneurial road was not smooth sailing. After achieving success on YouTube, Mr Kim and his partners decided to go to Vietnam to develop and open a Vietnamese restaurant. Behind this decision was their thoughtful market research and deep insight into the Vietnamese business environment. They found that Vietnam's coffee shops and catering industry have huge development potential, especially in foreign tourist areas. So, they resolutely set foot on this land full of opportunities and challenges.
During their entrepreneurship in Vietnam, Mr Kim and his team encountered many difficulties and challenges. Due to a limited budget, they could only work in a Vietnamese coffee shop at first, working hard from morning to night, building connection with staff, and deepening their understanding of Vietnamese coffee-making techniques. At the same time, they also actively accumulated contacts and experience, preparing for the opening of their restaurant. After months of searching and the help of intermediaries, they finally found a small shop on the main street of a foreign tourist area.
As a transnational entrepreneur, Mr Kim understands the importance of adaptation and integration. They did not simply copy the local cuisine but designed a menu with their own characteristics and innovative spirit. By studying and understanding the Vietnamese market and culture, they were able to better adjust their business strategies to meet the needs and preferences of local customers. This flexibility and innovation became one of the keys to their success.
However, the restaurant's opening period was not smooth. On the first day, they only made USD 50 in revenue. In the face of this dilemma, Mr Kim did not give up. He keenly realized the importance of online platforms like Tripadvisor in attracting customers and began to focus on improving online reviews and rankings. After tireless efforts, their restaurant's ranking on Tripadvisor gradually increased, and customers started coming in to taste the food. Eventually, the restaurant became profitable two months later, marking a turning point in their business.
In his subsequent sharing, Mr Kim also mentioned how they flexibly responded to challenges and seized opportunities during the pandemic. When the restaurant business was severely affected, they decisively turned to the Webtoon industry, using their fan base and innovative capabilities to develop a new business model. By hiring programmers and developers to build their IP, plan, and develop stories, they successfully broke into the Japanese and American markets. In this process, they not only demonstrated extraordinary flexibility and innovation but also showed a keen insight into and grasp of market trends. Recently, his team has raised KRW 9.2 billion in funding, aiming to build a global content company.
In the final part of the event, Mr Kim and his entrepreneurial partner, Mr Sungrak Choi, interacted with the audience and shared their entrepreneurial insights and lessons learned. They encouraged everyone to maintain innovative thinking and flexibility in the face of difficulties and challenges. Their sharing not only provided valuable experience for the audience but also inspired everyone's passion and motivation for entrepreneurship and innovation.
文字：李翔儒、Doris Chu
图片：诺丁汉大学商学院（中国）返回搜狐，查看更多
责任编辑：