BC Card (President and CEO, Joon Hee Suh, www.bccard.com) has announced on the 24th that BC Card and Sokcho City will provide consultation and support to local businesses and start-ups.

Sokcho City is a tourist city, recently caught in a ‘Pokemon-go’ fever and trending as the only city in Korea where people could play this popular game which uses augmented reality (AR). Sokcho is planning to re-vitalize its commerce and businesses, using this great opportunity.

BC Card will use its card data - purchases per merchant category, tourists’ card usage volume and more, to analyze consumer consumption pattern and routes. Sokcho City plans to provide this useful information to merchant owners, including youth start-ups, and invigorate commercial districts of the city.

As a preceding step to these endeavors, BC Card has signed a business agreement with Sokcho City’s Young Merchant Support Center – a center created to provide support for local youths in 20~30s experiencing unemployment crisis and financial hardships. The center remodeled an empty shop in JoongAng Market and provides this space for start-up companies.

A representative in Economic Buildup Department, Sokcho City stated, “Sokcho plans to provide as much financial and administrative support as possible to young start-up owners so these youths can successfully open and operate their businesses.”

Mr. Duk Soo Kwon, President of Sokcho City’s Young Merchant Support Center, also mentioned, “We hope to use BC Card’s big data analysis to improve not only businesses run by young merchant owners but also already established businesses around Sokcho.”

Sokcho City is also planning to provide port entry to large cruises ship in preparations for the upcoming ‘2017 Pan-Asia Hash’ Competition. Sokcho expects an increase in foreigner influx and BC Card plans to provide data analysis and consultation to support Sokcho’s aspirations to become a globally renowned commercial district.