- WADIZ, THE ORGANIZER OF LIPS 1 FOR 3 YEARS, IS RECOGNIZED AS A SPECIALIZED VC FOR 'LYCONS' BY BEING SELECTED FOR LIPS 2
- 20 brands invested by Wadiz with combined revenue of KRW 41 billion in 2024... 45% growth year-on-year
- "We will strengthen our role as a growth partner for emerging brands, including launching products co-developed with promising brands and expanding globally."
Wadiz is set to accelerate its efforts to help nurture emerging brands in the lifestyle field.
Wadiz(CEO Shin Hye-sung, www.wadiz.kr) announced today that its investment subsidiary, Wadiz Partners(CEO So Kang-seop), has been selected as the private operator of the Innovative Small Business Investment Support Project 2025 (LIPS Ⅱ).
LIPS 2 is a program in which private investment companies designated by the Small Enterprise & Market Service under the Ministry of SMEs and Startups make upfront investments in promising small businesses and then recommend them, and the Ministry of SMEs and Startups matches the commercialization funds. Management funds are provided up to three times the amount of private investment, within a limit of 200 million won, and this year, up to 300 companies will be supported.
Wadiz Partners has been selected as the lead organization for the Private Investment-Linked Matching Loan (LIPS I) project since 2023 and has been operating the project for three years. LIPS I is a project that matches policy funds up to five times the investment amount, up to a limit of 500 million won, to small and medium-sized enterprises when private investors make an upfront investment, and this year's budget is 40 billion won.
Wadiz Partners was selected as the organizer of LIPS 1 in 2023 and will now be the private operator of LIPS 2. Wadiz Partners is recognized as a venture capital firm that specializes in fostering entrepreneurial small businesses in the field of Lycone.
Wadiz Partners also launched the Licorn Fund in collaboration with Lotte Home Shopping last year and plans to focus on investing in and nurturing lifestyle and local brands with high growth potential. Wadiz Partners has been selected as the first General Partner (GP) of the Licorn Fund, which will be launched in 2024 as the parent fund.
Companies invested by Wadiz Partners are growing rapidly. The 20 startups selected for Wadiz' brand incubation program, NextBrand, are on track to generate KRW 41 billion in revenue in 2024, up 45% year-on-year.
"With the selection of Lips2 as a private operator, we expect promising companies that have received investment by Wadiz Partners to secure business operation funds to focus on innovative product development and content research and development," said Kangseob So, CEO of Wadiz Partners. "In particular, this year, Wadiz plans to strengthen its role as a growth partner for emerging brands by directly expanding overseas through Wadiz Global Service, which will be launched in the first half of this year."
