Seoul Business Agency (SBA) said on the 30th that Chief Executive Kim Hyun-woo won the global city brand innovation leadership institutional sector at the 2025 National Brand Awards.
The National Brand Awards is an award presented to individuals and corporations who have contributed to strengthening Korea's brand competitiveness through the National Brand Conference, launched in 2015. It is co-hosted by the Culture. Sports. and Tourism Committee of the National Assembly and the National Brand Promotion Agency. Marking its 10th anniversary this year, the event selected awardees who created innovation and achievements across fields including culture, industry, arts, and sports.
Leading the SBA, Kim was highly recognized for a city branding strategy that expanded Seoul's competitiveness onto the global stage, centered on small and medium-sized enterprises and startups and the content industry. Kim pursued various activities, including hosting SeoulCon, the world's first global influencer expo, supporting sales channels and networks to help small and medium-sized enterprises enter overseas markets, and promoting Seoul's technologies and products on global stages such as CES.
At the ceremony, in addition to Kim, actor Im Yoon-ah was selected in the culture institutional sector; the Daegu International Voice Competition and the National Museum of Korea in the arts institutional sector; fencers Oh Sang-uk and Ahn Se-young in the sports institutional sector; CJ Olive Young and Mofac Studios in the corporations institutional sector; and Yongma Electronics in the overseas Korean corporations institutional sector.
Kim Hyun-woo said, "It is meaningful that our efforts to support Seoul's small and medium-sized enterprises and startups in entering the global market have been recognized," adding, "We will continue to do our best so that Seoul and Korea can grow into economic and cultural brands that draw attention worldwide."