“Awesome!” Meet CEO Hyunwoo Cho of Daebak Company, a startup that connects Korea and the world with a square box

– Daebak Company’s box business was born from the desire to connect Korea and the world.

– Collaboration with local specialty gift boxes, collaboration boxes with Korean brands

– The meaning of subscription business based on physical goods in the AI era

“I think it’s about wanting to connect. Remember when we were kids, we used to get a box full of gifts and it made us feel good!”

The global subscription box market has many companies that once spread like wildfire and then quietly disappeared. However, from 2015 to now, there is a company that has been delivering Korean culture to the world in a single box. Daebak Company.

Daedaebak Company’s boxes are not just simple gift packages. Daedaebak Company CEO Hyunwoo Cho says that this business is not just a distribution business, but “an experiment for cultural connection.”

“I wanted to make someone else feel the same emotion I felt.”

CEO Hyunwoo Cho started his own business right after graduating from college. At the time, he was living in the U.S., and he got the idea while traveling from San Francisco to LA and interacting with foreigners who were interested in the Korean Wave.

“Koreans may not know this, but Korean culture is very new to foreigners. They react to even a single snack.”

When CEO Cho introduced Korean snacks to his foreign friends during his time studying abroad, he began to think of a model that could promote Korea. That's how 'Snack Fever Box' began. A business that sells Korean snacks to local consumers in the United States in the form of a regular subscription. The effective result was the combination of Korean content with the familiar American subscription model. CEO Cho saw the potential and decided to start a business.

The 'Snack Fever Box' that started in 2015 was the first subscription service containing K-snacks. Unexpectedly, the response from customers in the West, such as the US, Canada, and Europe, was enthusiastic. The box, which started with snacks, later expanded to various K-contents such as cosmetics, characters, and school supplies. "Customers opened the box and said, 'This is really awesome.' I loved that." The name of the box naturally became 'Daebak Box.' After that, CEO Cho returned from the US to Korea to distribute more Korean products.

“There were three of us at first, but we ended up being alone.”

In the early days of the company, CEO Cho started the company with two co-founders. Both were Koreans with roots in the United States. However, as time passed, the burden of management, the pressure of cash flow, and stagnant growth all came together, and the two left the company one after another. “The time when the three of us worked hard together was the most enjoyable. However, when a crisis came, my mind completely changed. I… believed that I just hadn’t met the opportunity yet.”

In the United States, where he had no business partners or family, what he held onto was the belief that “this community must not disappear.” He said that he values “connectivity.” People to people, countries to countries. His desire to connect people all over the world gave birth to “Daebak Box.”

“We are not a company that sells things, we are a marketing community company.”

Starting with the snack box, Daedaebak Company created collaboration boxes with various brands. Mediheal, CJ, Line Friends, GS25, and other major brands were collaboration partners. The components were simple, but the structure was not complicated.

There are three types of boxes presented by CEO Cho.

First, the subscription-type Daebak Box aims to curate emotions about the Korean Wave. The main customers are foreigners who are interested in K-culture, and it is also being developed for foreign workers in Korea.

Second, the brand box aims to promote new products and convey brand stories. It is a win-win model for both the company and Daebak Company by putting kits in the box so that various brands can be promoted and experienced. Korean brands can be naturally promoted and made known.

Third, regional boxes aim to connect cultures based on regional specialties and tourism content. Representative examples include the Gyeongju Cheomseongdae Box in 2021, the Seoul Namsan Box in 2022, the Damyang Juknokwon Box in 2022, and the Busan Gwangalli Box in 2023. These boxes contain regional brands, specialties, and lifestyle experience vouchers. Through this, they serve as a window for linking with and promoting regional tourism programs.

“What we sell is not the box itself, but the experience that comes with the box.

“Brands can convey their sincerity to their customers through us, and customers can feel closer to Korea through the box.”

AI, metaverse, digital human… The world is moving towards an immaterial era. However, CEO Cho is obsessed with ‘physical boxes’. I wondered if there were any risks in running a business that sells physical products in the AI era. “Even in the AI era, people ultimately want to open things with their hands.” The reason is simple. Humans are tactile creatures, and emotions are triggered by physical properties.

“In the AI era, real things and communities will become more important.”

In this rapidly changing era, most people are moving to digital, but CEO Cho is going against the grain. He insists on physical boxes and holds offline community meetings. “The common sentiment of the current era is ‘emptiness.’ No matter how convenient AI becomes, people ultimately want to connect. The box is a physical medium that symbolizes that connection.”

Daedaebak Company is a service that is alive with the 'joy of receiving'. It is not a simple product, but a curation box that contains the culture called 'Korea'. Furthermore, it has recently been connected to language exchange meetings for foreigners living in Seoul, local exploration programs, and K-drama study clubs. All of these activities are part of the "designed experience that makes you like Korea."

Recently, CEO Cho planned a community called 'Nurida', which leads to K-dream. "Foreign interns were always lonely. They couldn't make friends. So I created an English-Korean language exchange community that met during the day." This community is currently expanding to offline meetings, K-drama study, and local tour workations. All of these activities are 'experiments in connection beyond the box.'

CEO Hyunwoo Cho, who is serious about connecting people and the world, also participated in a campaign to reduce CO2 around the world by planting tree seeds in mangrove forests every time a Daebak Box is sold from 2022 to early 2024. He clearly seemed like a person who gives good energy to the world. He was trying to invite foreigners to Korea in various ways.

“I gained strength from reading “Meditations” during difficult times.”

During the most difficult times, the book he held onto was “Meditations.” It is a diary written by Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius on the battlefield. “‘The current problem will definitely be solved.’ This sentence is what brought Cho back to his feet during his difficult times. “Even in such a barren battlefield, he wrote down every day for himself and conveyed his message to future generations through deep thoughts, which appealed to me and comforted me.” Even though he is still having a hard time every day, he still believes in ‘connection.’

“I want to collaborate with more companies”

Daedaebak Company is preparing to resume B2C brand boxes and regional boxes once again as a company selected for the Korea Tourism Organization’s ‘Tourism Global Challenge’ in 2025. At the same time, it is also promoting community-based consumer connections targeting foreigners residing in Korea. “If Korean small and medium-sized enterprises and tourism brands want to reach out to global customers, we hope they will join us. Marketing, community, and experience design are all our strengths.”

CEO Hyunwoo Jo of Daedaebak Company, who foresees steady and continuous growth from the roots rather than a quick rise, is quietly preparing the next box while waiting for someone's 'small jackpot' today as well.