Seoul Int'l Young Education & Kidsfair(서울유아교육전) is Growing Globally.

Cho Min-Jae(CEO of SEGE Fairs), Global Leader of the Korea's Exhibition Industry
조민제 세계 전람 회장

The exhibition industry plays a vital role in creating jobs and securing national competitiveness. That's why China is currently trying to dominate the world exhibition market. The exhibition industry in Korea is growing faster every year, but now is the most critical time to strengthen international competitiveness.

We met with Cho Min-Jae, CEO of SEGE Fairs(세계전람) and president of the Korea Exhibition Organization Association( 한국전시주최자협회), to hear about the future and vision of the Korea exhibition industry.

Could you explain about SEGE Fairs (세계전람)?

SEGE Fairs(세계전람) is an exhibition organizing company, which plans and holds various industrial exhibitions found in 1993. Since 1994, beginning with the world's first international education fair for children and kids, SEGE Fairs has been growing for over 26 years.

Seoul Int’l Young Children Education & KidsFair(서울국제유아교육전) has motivated many countries and become the progenitor to other local baby fairs.

The Show was the first comprehensive institutional exhibition in Korea that encompasses children's education and culture, including books, emotional learning, arts, and physical education, toys, and amusement facilities. Now the show has also been held in Hanoi, and Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

In 2017, our show was awarded the best prize at the Asia Exhibition Alliance (AFECA).

Seoul Int'l Young Children Education & KIDSFair 2019

Please tell us about the changes and developments of the Seoul Int’l Young Children Education & KIDSFair to suit the fourth Industrial Revolution Era.

Indeed, Seoul Int’l Young Children Education & KidsFair (서울국제유아교육전) is also changing in the fourth industrial revolution Era. First of all, you could witness the number of telecommunication companies such as SK Broadband, and LG Uplus are getting increasing. Nowadays, telecommunication companies have a significant role as a new platform for the online education market. Besides, online education content producers are getting more and more involved in our event, and they are occupying a large number of booths.

Nowadays, coding education is also mandatory after English, and the increasing number of coding companies is a significant change.

Suggestions on the Competitiveness and Vision of Korea's Exhibition Industry from the point of view of the president of the Korea Exhibition Organization Association

Currently, Korea's shipbuilding industry is recognized as a world-class industry, and now the world's four largest shipbuilding exhibitions are held in Korea. Also, large-scale exhibitions in Korea include machine tool exhibitions, food exhibitions, and others.

The biggest problem of the domestic exhibition industry is that there is no place large enough to hold large-scale exhibitions. Therefore, KINTEX, Busan BEXCO, COEX, etc. are also gradually increasing the size of their exhibition halls. As China has captured the exhibition industry around the world, I think it is urgent to build an exhibition hall that can compete with China.

Seoul Int'l Children Education & KIDSFair 2019

Suggestions to attract overseas tourists to domestic exhibitions

To attract overseas tourists who visit Korea to domestic exhibitions, the exhibition itself must become famous. However, the reality is that it requires a lot of budget and strategy to make a renowned exhibition. Never try to imitate the appearance of outstanding shows around the world. For example, Davos is a small rural village in Switzerland, but as it has become famous thanks to the Davos World Economic Forum. So we need a unique concept of exhibition that exceeds the size of a small city.

The reason why Seoul Int’l Young Children Education & KidsFair(서울국제유아교육전) has become notable that we are putting the soul into the exhibition when planning the show. The soul of the show, after all, keeps the vitality of the exhibition and maintains its uniqueness. We try to invite famous scholars in the field actively. Invited lectures by distinguished scholars are only available for an admission fee, but those lecturing shows tend to attract a pack of audiences. It's remarkable and lasts long when you lead your soul with an event.

The future of SEGE Fairs

SEGE Fairs (세계전람) is a company that organizes various exhibitions. Therefore, we are planning to hold some shows other than Seoul Int’l Young Children Education & KidsFair. We are also thinking about raising the show on an international scale. The exhibition scale is the key to competition with China, but it is challenging to secure the exhibition scale. If the exhibition hall gets more extensive, I can raise it to a more massive exhibition and make it an event that no one can compete with.

My ultimate goal is to make a world scale exhibition to attract more international buyers and visitors.