Minister Han Seong-sook of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups on the 18th listened to on-site voices by holding a "neighborhood bookstore roundtable" at a local bookstore in the Sanseong Market and Jemcheon commercial district in Gongju, South Chungcheong Province.
The Minister on this day communicated with merchants while buying rice cakes and side dishes at Gongju's Sanseong Market. Afterward, the Minister visited the Jemcheon commercial district and looked into "Gongju Youth Co-living House," which transformed an old inn into shared housing for young entrepreneurs, the independent bookstore "Bookstore, Itda," and the hanok cafe "Lucia's Garden."
The "neighborhood bookstore roundtable" was held at the independent bookstore "Old Questions" near Jemcheon. Attending the roundtable were representatives of bookstores in the Chungcheong region, including CEO Ji Myeong-hun of "Old Questions," CEO Yeon Young-suk, who runs "Danbi Bookstore" in Sejong, and CEO Kim Jun-tae, who runs "Dadaruda" in Daejeon. Also present were Lee Dae-geon, president of the National Neighborhood Bookstore Network, as well as commercial district planners and experts.
At the roundtable, Lee Dae-geon, president of the National Neighborhood Bookstore Network, shared "the status of neighborhood bookstores, best practices, and future directions for development." Participants held a free discussion and talked about not only the role and importance of neighborhood bookstores but also the path forward for development.
The Minister said, "Neighborhood bookstores are more than spaces that sell books; they are places where local culture and people live and breathe," adding, "We will support everything from startup and collaboration to revitalizing commercial districts so that local bookstores, where local stories accumulate, can be nurtured as cultural anchors of their districts."