I was at a ramen restaurant I frequently visited, but it had closed down. I recalled the last conversation I had with the owner. They noted, 'Marketing, employee management, and countless other things to worry about make it quite difficult. I wish someone could help.' At that moment, I realized that the owner was crushed under the weight of daily big and small decisions, and that they were carrying alone the burden of those decisions determining the success or failure of the business.
Nam Yoon-soo, the representative of Teacher for Boss, explained the reasons for starting the business. 'Teacher for Boss' is an application-based service that connects self-employed owners with experts capable of solving various issues such as marketing, market analysis, employee management, and policies.
This venture was initiated by six university students who resonated with the social responsibility of invigorating self-employment. Currently, ten young entrepreneurs are collaborating to brainstorm better services. Additionally, twenty self-employment experts who share the vision have also lent their support. Last November, before the app was launched, it was valued at 500 million won and received an investment of 100 million won.
South Korea is notably recognized as a country with a large number of self-employed individuals. Nam stated, 'In the age of 6 million self-employed, the Korean economy, supported by them, must not collapse,' adding, 'Teacher for Boss will reasonably provide the 'real information' that self-employed owners desire to contribute to the revitalization of self-employment.'
This app allows users to easily and quickly find information about difficulties experienced in self-employment, including marketing, market conditions, know-how, employee management, interior design, and policies. In 'Teacher Talk,' a mini-teaching space where users can obtain the desired information reasonably, they can learn know-how from self-employment experts over the price of a cup of coffee. According to Nam, it has dramatically reduced the expenses compared to traditional consulting firms that charged 1 million to 3 million won per hour.
They plan to pause their services for a while to consider how they can better assist self-employed individuals in 2025. To this end, they intend to refine their services based on insights gained from directly entering the self-employment market.
Meanwhile, Teacher for Boss is a resident company of the Dongguk University Campus Town and is receiving support from the Seoul city government and Dongguk University Campus Town. The Dongguk University Campus Town Business Group selects promising startups as resident companies, providing them with startup support spaces and conducting various entrepreneurship and incubation programs including practical training and constant expert consulting.