Korean eatery opens in Estonia

By Ryu Chang-gi

A young owner of a Korean restaurant in Estonia, a Baltic state of Northern Europe, encouraged college graduates to hear their inner voice of what they want to do with their life to find the “it-job.”

“I have seen numerous people who tried hard to pass the state exam to select government officials and civil servants or get a job at such a global company as Samsung, without considering their personal traits,” Kim Soo-hwan, 29, an owner of Gimbap store in Tallinn, said Tuesday.

“I was going to ask them if stable jobs are all they want and if they have no challenging mind.”

Before opening the restaurant in July, then the Kyungpook National University student stayed in Lithuania for a year in 2008 as an Erasmus Exchange student majoring in electronics at Vlinus Technical University. This experience opened his eyes for a new career as an entrepreneur in product logistics in Baltic Europe.

“Estonia has been a transit center in Europe since the medieval period. The population of this small country is only nearly 1 million. But over 7 million people from all over the world are visiting this country every year for tourism,” Kim said.

He saw immense business opportunities in this small Baltic nation because of such characteristic.

But he faced a hurdle to pursue the dream career of an entrepreneur in product logistics right away.

He didn’t have money to create his own start-up business in product logistics.

To make seed money for his future business, Kim decided to open a Gimbap (made by rolling sticky rice in a piece of laver). He did research on and had a training of how to make good Gimbap at a chain store of Gimpbap Heaven in Ulsan before he opened his store in Tallinn.

While preparing for his own business, he met an Estonian soul mate and married to Maria Kim in 2010. The Kim couple now runs the Gimbap store in Estonia. Maria is expected to have a baby soon.

Although his business is still in a humble start, Kim said he is quite satisfied with his current job as he has a dream to come true.

“Don’t be afraid of a failure. Many people that I know say they were discouraged from starting their own business because of the fear. All I can say is follow your heart,” he said.

“Your parents may not be happy with your decision to open your own business because only a small tiny number of start-up businesses survive. But go ahead with your decision if you are confident that you can do it well and have passion for it.”

Kim said currently only 10 Koreans are living in Estonia.

“Sometimes I feel proud of being a Korean because people here know the award-winning film director Kim Ki-deok and pop star Psy,” he said.

Kim said he would like to play a bridge role between Korea and Baltic States. “I am planning to build a traditional Korean house in Tallinn to help local people visit and experience the Korean culture,” he said.

The young entrepreneur dreams of having a franchise business both in Korea and the Baltic country. He advised unemployed college graduates not to give up their dream and confront the challenges and adversities facing them.