The Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency is helping 300 companies with little or no export experience make their first overseas sales and break into foreign markets. The agency plans to tailor its support to each firm's specific obstacles and target markets.
KOTRA said on the 27th that it is running the "2026 First Step to Export Week" to support exports by 300 domestic-focused and novice exporting companies.
The program is designed to resolve the practical difficulties companies face when preparing to export and to identify where support is actually needed. Starting from the application stage, KOTRA collects information on each company's export obstacles and preferred target markets and reflects that in its support.
Working with partner organizations, KOTRA provides information needed to prepare for exports and connects companies seeking overseas customers with buyers in their target markets. The agency said it is focusing on turning feedback from companies into tailored support that produces actual export results.
The obstacles differed depending on export experience. In a September survey of applicants that analyzed their difficulties and support needs, companies selling only in the domestic market cited basic export procedures such as customs clearance and obtaining overseas certifications most often, accounting for 23.6% of all responses. Among companies that already export, more than 30% said they needed help with promotional activities such as finding overseas sales channels.
In response, KOTRA held an online briefing on export support on the 14th. The Seoul Main Customs explained how to resolve difficulties with basic export procedures including customs clearance, while the Korea Testing & Research Institute outlined procedures and support programs for obtaining overseas standards certifications. For first-time exporters, the agency introduced ways to find overseas buyers and develop sales channels using KOTRA's "Export24" platform. An official at one participating company said the firm had struggled with basic procedures such as customs and certification while preparing to export for the first time. "Through this briefing, I was able to systematically understand export procedures and preparations, and to get a sense of what we need to prepare for exporting going forward," the official said.
The markets applicants most wanted to enter were the United States, Japan and Vietnam, in that order. KOTRA is identifying overseas buyers with a focus on those markets and is providing one-on-one video export consultations for the 300 selected companies over three weeks, from the 26th of this month through the 13th of next month. Companies that go on to complete actual exports through those consultations can also receive local logistics cost support through KOTRA's overseas shared logistics centers.
KOTRA said it will strengthen follow-up support so that companies with limited export experience can enter foreign markets on a stable footing and turn a first transaction into continued exports. "At small regional companies, the chief executive often handles human resources, materials, logistics and sales personally, so it is not easy to secure the time and staff needed to enter overseas markets," KOTRA President Kang Kyung-sung said. "We will work alongside these companies from export preparation to finding overseas buyers and closing the first deal, and build export results together."