South Korean businesses make an impact in Frankfurt

The German metropolis of Frankfurt has been a hub of international commerce and industry for many years. With one of the busiest airports in the world, it’s also home to one of the largest and most efficient exchange markets: the Frankfurt Stock Exchange.

Frankfurt skyline Flickr cc tysk_pojken

With these credentials, its strategic location and its excellent infrastructure, Frankfurt attracts scores of international businesses – including 127 South Korean companies, the largest South Korean business community in Europe.

South Korea comes to Germany

Young Germany spoke to Peter Erhardt, who has worked for KOTRA (Korea Trade – Investment Promotion Agency) for the last 25 years. He cites the strategic geographic location of Frankfurt as a key factor in its appeal to foreign companies.

“If you jump into the car, you can go in any direction. [Frankfurt Am Main] airport’s biggest rival is London [Heathrow] and is busier than London in the holidays. There are direct links to every major capital from the airport which makes it very easily accessible.”

This accessibility is part of what makes it such an attractive region for business.

Banking on a strategic location

One such business is the Bank of Korea. In the grand scheme of things, the South Korean bank may not be the biggest of players in Frankfurt, but nonetheless the institution felt that a presence in Frankfurt was necessary to keep it at the heart of European business.

Wook-Joong Kim works in the bank’s Frankfurt office. He emphasizes the need to have a representative office situated in Frankfurt alongside many important financial institutions:

“With the National Central Bank and the European Central Bank here in Frankfurt, among all the other financial institutions here, we felt we needed to have an office here, which we have had for the last thirty years or so,” he said.

“As we are only a representative office of the Bank of Korea, we don’t do any transactions; we are more of a liaison between the main bank in South Korea and all our other main banks around the world.”

“It is our only office in the EU,” Kim added.

Setting up shop

Setting up the office in Germany was surprisingly easy thanks to the support systems in place.

Kim came to Frankfurt several months ahead of his family which allowed him to take part in language training courses to help improve his German which he describes as “just about good enough to get by.”

He’s now been here for one year and is enjoying the city.

“My family and I are settled into Frankfurt. In general everything is good. My children are enrolled into the international school, and the company has been really supportive. They pay for my housing, they help pay for my children’s tuition fees, all of which is on top of my salary.”

Some additional help courtesy of the general consulate in Frankfurt also smoothed the transition.

Rolling into Frankfurt

Kia Another South Korean company that has set up a base in Frankfurt is Kia Motors. As with the Bank of Korea, the location played a major role in the company’s decision to set up offices in Frankfurt.

However, Kia went one step further by choosing Frankfurt as a central point in their company’s operations.

“KIA has four major centers around the world. They are in Seoul, South Korea; Namyang, North Korea; Irvine, California, USA, and also in Frankfurt. Of course the fact that our Research and Design center is only 30 km away from Frankfurt turns this location into an even bigger advantage,” said Silke Rosskothen, who works in the KIA Motors offices in Frankfurt.

She added: “It’s very central in Germany, it is a metropolis, everything is very close, and we really are in the middle of things here. From here we can handle the market, the infrastructure is good, and we are directly at the IAA (International Motor Show) when it is on.”

Proximity to the IAA is a huge benefit for a car company – the IAA’s bi-annual event is the world’s largest automotive fair.

Rosskothen also notes the city’s many other attractive features: “The city itself is very positive, it’s welcoming, and obviously it’s very well known.”

With two of South Korea’s biggest international companies making an impact in Frankfurt, it surely cannot be long before even more businesses follow suit.

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