The 2017 Korea Consumer Goods Showcase, hosted by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) and organized by KOTRA, provided global business leaders and Korean companies the chance to explore part- nership opportunities in the consumer goods industry. Held in Seoul from June 15 to 16, 1,300 Korean enterprises specializing in convergence goods, fashion apparel, food, health, beauty and baby products attended the event to meet with potential foreign buyers. The event was comprised of two main programs: the K-Consumer Goods Exhibition and one- on-one business meetings.
   A total of 1,300 Korean suppliers held business meetings with 330 foreign buy- ers from 41 countries. 11 global retailers and their 56 vendors were also invited to provide consultation for Korean firms hoping to sell their products to global retailers and promote sales. “We’re excit- ed to have this opportunity to meet inno- vative Korean companies,” said a repre- sentative at Tchibo, a German chain of coffee retailers and coffee shops. “KOTRA has done an outstanding job promoting Korea overseas so we look forward to working with the agency to meet Korean partners.”
   The most popular exhibition in the showcase was the convergence consumer goods pavilion. Korean companies in this pavilion pushed

the boundaries of smart wearables, displaying smart belts and smart shoes at the exhibition. A sales staff at Welt, a Korean startup and winner of the trade ministry’s most innovative award, pointed to a black leather belt. “Welt keeps track of your waist size and records how active, or inactive, you’ve been throughout the day. It also keeps your pants up, of course.”
   Another company under the spotlight was Salted Venture, a spin-off startup from Samsung Electronics. Hailed as the world’s most advanced smart shoes, Salted Venture’s IOFIT, tracks the weight transfer and balance in your golf swing. The pressure sensors insides the insoles send information to your phone, allowing you to check your foot pressure data; the app even offers suggestions to improve your stance.
   But it wasn’t only the latest IoT tech- nologies that were turning heads at

the Korea Consumer Goods Showcase. Large crowds gathered at the Art Collaboration Exhibition, which provided small and medium enterprises (SMEs) the opportunity to work with Korea’s renewed artists to design their products. All products from the exhibition will be featured in various overseas marketing events to promote the export of SMEs.
   Held on the sidelines of the event was a seminar on the latest trends in China’s consumer goods export market. The sem- inar invited experts well-versed in China’s changing consumer market and provided practical strategies to Korean companies interested in entering the China. One such expert was Kichan Jeon of the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation. “China’s agro-food market takes up a whopping 17 percent of the entire world agro-food market share,” said Jeon. “As such,

Korea’s export volume to China has grown signif- icantly; last year Korea exported USD 1.47 billion worth of agro-food products to China.” According to Jeon, Korean products that are seeing constant demand by Chinese consumers include yuzu tea, dried seaweed and baby formulas.

   KOTRA President and CEO Jaehong Kim noted that consumer goods are becoming more important than ever, as they continue to record stable export growth. Kim added that events like this can diversify risks in Korea’s current export structure which is mainly driven by intermediate and

industrial goods. By creating more jobs than the traditional manufacturing sector, these industries will no doubt serve as the driving force in Korea’s exports.