Flip-flops, surfboard and a pitch: Jeju founders seek investors at local startup festa

"We will grow into a global brand that surpasses Patagonia — starting from Jeju."

A founder walked into the room wearing flip-flops and carrying a surfboard. Kim Jun-yong, chief executive of Better Than Surf, laid out his ambition to turn a Jeju-born marine leisure brand into a world-class lifestyle label — a far cry from the suit-and-tie atmosphere of a typical IR presentation.

The scene unfolded Wednesday at the Sheraton Jeju Hotel, where the 1st Local Startup Festa in Jeju hosted a local investment road show. Entrepreneurs rooted in the region's distinct character stepped forward with their own personalities and business strategies to attract investment. The lineup ranged from a founder dreaming of building a global marine leisure brand out of Jeju to a company helping domestic small and medium-sized enterprises break into overseas markets.

Better Than Surf is a local brand built on Jeju's surfing culture and marine leisure, offering functional apparel, casual wear and leisure goods. Kim drew on a background in brand design at Line and Hyundai Card before striking out on his own in Jeju.

The road show gave innovative small-business founders a platform to present their business models and growth strategies directly to investors and explore funding opportunities. Founders delivered their own IR pitches, sharing business results and future plans, while investors pressed them on valuation, profitability and growth potential.

"I spent about 15 years doing brand design at large companies, but burnout made me rethink my life," Kim said. "I poured the lifestyle I discovered through surfing and running in Jeju into the brand."

Kim cited Jeju's distinctive surfing culture and marine leisure scene as the brand's competitive edge. The strategy goes beyond selling products: by combining leisure content with community building, the company aims to cultivate a loyal customer base.

Better Than Surf is expanding its product lineup with a focus on functional apparel. "National team athletes and brand ambassadors test and refine the products themselves," Kim said. "We are growing into an authentic brand by building leisure content and community around our products."

Sales are rising. Last year's sales came to about 100 million won ($74,600), and Kim projects 200 million to 300 million won this year. Sales in October — typically the off-season — rose 450 percent from the same month a year earlier, Kim said.

The brand is also pushing into overseas markets. This year it signed an export deal with Japanese fashion retailer United Arrows, and plans to expand into China, Taiwan and Bali, Indonesia. Domestically, the company intends to extend its offline retail presence beyond Jeju into Seoul and the broader metropolitan area.

Kim also unveiled a plan to raise 500 million won ($373,000) in investment. The funds would go toward accelerating development of functional products, expanding production and building distribution networks at home and abroad. Partnerships with strategic production partners are central to the plan, with the goal of improving cost competitiveness and scaling up supply.

"We will grow from surfing into leisure, and from a Jeju brand into a global brand," Kim said. "We want to create a lifestyle brand that represents Jeju and earns recognition around the world."

Also pitching at the road show was Theyoonsl, a solutions company that helps small and medium-sized enterprises expand overseas. Chief Executive Kim Hyun-ju introduced an export support service linked to more than seven global online marketplaces — including Amazon and eBay — and outlined the company's strategy for growing its international footprint.