Backed by 4 billion won venture fund, Rico secures 6,000 clients and 40 billion won in annual sales in 8 years
Rico, a startup that began in a rural corner of Yesan County in South Chungcheong Province, draws attention as it prepares to enter overseas markets after receiving 4 billion won ($2.61 million) from the provincial venture fund and establishing itself as a dominant force in South Korea's commercial waste sector.
The province-backed company has secured 6,000 corporate clients — including major conglomerates — and achieved annual sales of 40 billion won within eight years of its founding, raising expectations for its future growth.
Rico is a commercial waste management company headquartered near a two-lane road (Provincial Road No. 2) at the foot of Gayasan in Deoksan, Yesan. CEO Kim Geun-ho founded it in 2018 with the goal of turning waste into resources.
Through its proprietary waste management platform Upbox, the company provides integrated collection, processing and recycling services for 78 categories of waste — including food waste, plastics, paper, vinyl, used cooking oil and general trash — generated at logistics centers, shopping malls, hotels, factories, restaurants and cafeteria facilities.
Rico surpassed 20 billion won in annual sales in 2023 and has since maintained an average annual growth rate of 32 percent. On the strength of those results, the company received the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy minister's award at the 2022 Corporate Innovation Grand Prize, followed by the Prime Minister's Award in 2024.
Rico also ranked first in waste management among Asia-Pacific high-growth companies selected by the Financial Times.
Building on those achievements, Rico launched its Upbox service in Indonesia last year, marking its entry onto the international stage, and is currently fielding interest from countries across the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
"The steep growth Rico has achieved as a startup is understood to have been underpinned by investments from the provincial venture fund and other sources," a South Chungcheong Province official said. "We will continue to nurture South Chungcheong-style unicorn companies by providing investment support to promising local startups."
Meanwhile, South Chungcheong Province has established and is operating 14 venture investment funds totaling 594.9 billion won to promote venture investment, and plans to expand that to 30 funds worth 1.5 trillion won by 2030.
kwonhl@heraldcorp.com
