Editor’s Note
Iksan’s sustained success in securing national funding underscores its pivotal role in South Korea’s jewelry industry. This fourth consecutive selection highlights both the complex’s strategic importance and the city’s enduring legacy as a hub for gemstone craftsmanship and innovation.
Iksan City in Jeonbuk Special Self-Governing Province has achieved the remarkable feat of being selected for the ‘Root Industry Specialized Complex Support Project’ for four consecutive years, reviving its reputation as the ‘City of Gems’.
Iksan City announced on the 12th that the ‘Iksan (IKSAN)-U Jewelry Specialized Complex’ has been selected for the specialized complex support project hosted by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy’s National Root Industry Promotion Center, securing a total project cost of 316 million won, including national funding.
Root industries refer to foundational industries that form the basis of manufacturing, such as casting, mold-making, welding, and heat treatment. In the Iksan region, gem processing is classified as a representative root industry.
Since its first selection in the project in 2021, Iksan City has been organically cooperating with local jewelry companies to discover joint innovation activities. The Fashion Industry Testing and Research Institute, the trustee of the Fashion Jewelry Joint R&D Center, played a central role.
From the following year, 2022, the city began a project to create an online ecosystem to transform the jewelry industry into a future-oriented, high-value-added industry. Subsequently, last year, it established the ‘Brilliant Studio’, a digital commerce hub space for Iksan jewelry.
Linked to this, Iksan City is embarking on advancing online commerce and strengthening digital capabilities this year. The city plans to actively utilize the achievements and infrastructure from the jointly promoted projects over the past three years to demonstrate differentiated results.
The specific project details include: △Establishing a Business-to-Consumer (B2C) online platform utilizing a joint brand △Providing in-depth training for AI digital marketers and live commerce △Developing sales channels through participation in domestic and international joint exhibitions △Establishing an Iksan-type eco-friendly jewelry certification system and introducing a digital logistics photography system.
Meanwhile, the Root Industry Specialized Complex Support Project is a national program that provides funding for improving shared facilities, building convenience facilities to enhance the working environment, and supporting joint innovation activities. It targets 54 root industry complexes nationwide through annual public offerings to promote the agglomeration and competitiveness of root enterprises.