KCGC hosts consulting forum for Korean-food entrepreneurs on the U.S. East Coast

The Korean Cuisine Globalization Committee (KCGC), based on the U.S. East Coast, held the “2024 K-Food Global Vision Forum” at the Korean Cultural Center New York on October 1, offering consulting and lectures for Korean-food entrepreneurs. The forum was organized by KCGC with sponsorship from the Korean Food Promotion Institute (KFPI) and the Korean Cultural Center New York.

Running from 1 p.m. to 5:30 p.m., the event drew about 100 participants — operators of Korean restaurants in New York and prospective founders. KCGC had recruited attendees seeking consulting through advance registration.

Franchise consulting, hygiene training, and business coaching were led by Korea’s Global K-Foodiero and by Lim Do-gyun, team lead at New York-based Woorimat Consulting. Global K-Foodiero introduced Korean franchise brands and their business models, while Lim delivered a practical lecture on hygiene manuals and on-site response procedures.

The forum that followed featured Yoo Jung-soo, CEO of Glow Seoul; Rudy You, CEO of Armored Fresh; Chef Choi Jung-yoon, Chair of Nanro-hoe in Korea; and attorney Yohan Lee based in Los Angeles. Participants heard talks on globalizing and industrializing Korean cuisine, and discussed the direction hansik should take as a global trend.

Chef Choi Jung-yoon, Chair of Nanro-hoe, has spent 26 years as a chef and researcher of Korean food across Korea, Spain and Australia. In 2022 she founded Nanro-hoe around the theme of branding hansik globally, and now leads a network of more than 300 Korean-food experts. Yoo Jung-soo of Glow Seoul is known for building distinctive brands through space design — his projects such as Onchunjib and Cheongsu-dang helped turn Seoul’s Ikseon-dong into one of the city’s hottest neighborhoods. Rudy You of Armored Fresh, whose company has broken into the U.S. market with vegan cheese and other sustainable dairy alternatives, shared his view of the expertise and vision K-food will need next. Attorney Yohan Lee closed with a review of key considerations around franchising and licensing.

After the forum, KCGC hosted a “Night of Hansik,” presenting the Korean Food Globalization Award to Korean-food YouTuber Manchi, the Chef Award to Chef Baek In-geun of Hand Hospitality, and the Company Award to Yoo Jung-soo of Glow Seoul. “We have moved one step beyond globalizing Korean food and set our sights on industrializing it,” said Moon Jun-ho, chair of KCGC. “We will lead that industrialization through more proactive events, and in new formats.”