(Goyang = Yonhap News) Reporter Wang Gil-hwan = 661 small and medium-sized companies have made export friends with Korean businessmen and are fulfilling their dreams of overseas expansion.

The World Korean International Trade Association (World Okta) announced on the 27th that 374 members achieved a total of 1,227 one-on-one matching results with 661 Korean small and medium-sized companies through the "Export Friends" project, which began on April 11 last year, at KINTEX Exhibition Hall 204 in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province.

The event was held as part of the 19th World Representative Congress and Export Consultation Conference, co-hosted by World Okta and Yonhap News, a national news agency. World Okta is the largest overseas Korean economic organization with branches in 145 cities in 73 countries around the world.

Jin Hyuk, head of the Global Business Center (GBC), said, "We participated in the project a lot in Asia and North America, and the number of matching beauty products was the highest with 229 cases thanks to the popularity of K-beauty.".

"Over the past year, we have conducted basic training for exports to small and medium-sized companies through one-on-one matching," he said. "From now on, the results will gradually appear, and cases that have led to actual contracts have begun to appear.".

Hong Boo-jin, CEO of the cosmetics company 'Mori&' in Busan, made an export friend with Kim Hae-dong, CEO of the tea and crafts import and export company in 丹, China, and conducted business exchanges over the past year, and recently signed a contract worth $5 million.

Song Jong-woon, CEO of 'Isol Tech', which manufactures energy-saving leisure houses, achieved $70,000 worth of technology exports with Malaysia's Container Hotel Group in November last year after meeting with Park Bang-soo, CEO of Good Hill, who trades in Singapore, more than 30 times.

About 150 people participated in the 1st anniversary performance report, including Park Ki-chul, interim executive chairman of World Octa, Park Ki-young and Jeong Kyung-rok, regional industry director of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, Kim Dong-kyun, head of the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology Promotion, officials from related organizations and small and medium-sized companies, and World Octa members.

Following the briefing session, World Octa moved to Room 212-213 and held the first "Export Friendship Product Briefing" (Showcase) in Korea. It is an event to collect products produced by promising small and medium-sized enterprises and introduce them to Korean businessmen operating around the world.

The briefing session, hosted by a professional show host, featured more than 50 regional specialized products, including pastes, food products, household goods, and machinery parts (industrial goods) manufactured by 40 SMEs carefully selected by the Korea Advanced Institute of Industrial Technology (KIAT).

After the show host introduced the product, World Octa members at the site asked questions directly and the manufacturer answered them, and the purchase intention was written on the spot.

Chairman Park Ki-chul said, "This showcase introduces the products of SMEs to the world from the perspective of World Octa members who have already pioneered the market there," adding, "It is meaningful in that it reflects the 'glocalization' strategy of targeting the global market with the most Korean products.".