Reflections on the First Step
In January 2020, I resolved, “From now on, I will support myself.” I wanted to create a lifelong career and do my own work without retirement. I wanted to build my own life, earning a living doing what I loved without being swayed by others. Up until then, I hadn't even considered things like corporations.
I became a writer, and many people listened to my opinions. As an extension of that, I unintentionally began a life as a freelancer. In the process, I discovered market demand and potential. In a sense, my eyes served as those of a marketing strategist and a brand implementer.
From Freelancer to Corporation
It was October 2021. I established a corporation and became a shareholder. The entire investment came from the royalties I earned selling my book.
Revenue in the first month of incorporation was around 600,000. This October marks three full years. It amounts to crossing the startup death valley.
In the meantime, our corporation's highest monthly revenue is 93 million won. It is just under 100 million won. That is because of my own method of calculating revenue; if I include the tax-exempt invoices exchanged with the National Tax Service, it seems like it would be a little over 100 million won per month.
The average unit price per contract is also steadily rising. (The power to raise prices and strategic judgment are crucial. For those unfamiliar with management or strategy, raising prices is a daunting task. Fortunately, while taking responsibility for brand strategy and profitability, I was able to keenly experience the power of pricing authority.)
As shown in the table below, in the first year of business, 650,000 won was earned per contract, but this year, an average of 4.5 million won is being received per contract.
New record
Today is August 31st, and if sales exceed 144,000 won today, the all-time record will be broken.
While breaking sales records would be significant in itself, our corporation has set another new record this month.
First, the number of employees in corporations registered with the four major social insurances reached double digits for the first time.
As a service-oriented company, we are still heavily reliant on manpower. Now that I have founded the company, I want to create an organization where people with similar values can gather, use each other as a lighthouse, and find strength, rather than a company where technicians gather solely to make money. Although it is a chaotic startup with many people coming and going, those who recognize one another in the process become long-time comrades. As time goes by, there are more such people. And such wonderful people and culture become the fragrance of flowers that attracts others like us.
Second, passive income surpassed 5 million won for the first time.
Running a service-oriented company has made its limitations apparent. We need a way to attract more consumers and handle services within the same fixed costs. I have maintained this mindset since the company's inception and have been developing it further. We have premiumized our services to offer them to a select few at high prices, while striving to transform the company's overall structure into one centered on passive income or service platforms in the long term.
We launched the service in May of this year. It isn't a massive hit, but it is fulfilling its role well. We confirmed that the demand the team predicted actually exists, and sales are occurring steadily every day.
The revenue generated through this 'automatic operation' exceeded 7 million won. This is the first time it has surpassed 5 million won. Of that, 30% is close to royalty revenue. A commission is received by the corporation whenever an item brokered by a consumer is sold. The remaining 70% is sales revenue from the new service launched in May.
As an entrepreneur, I am very happy about the fact that passive income is working.
Even if all company employees stop working, you can still earn 5 million won a month!
I hope that this revenue can grow to 10 million won, 100 million won, and 1 billion won, so that our company can truly execute a wonderful business on a large scale for 'creators'. 5 million won is a meaningful milestone that helps me dream.
Will it really reach record sales…?
There are now about 9 hours left until the August sales close. Will I break the corporation's highest sales record? If so, I should raise a toast today. It is fine even if I don't break the record. I am grateful that I always have something to toast to.
What would my life be like now if I hadn't dreamed of independence?.
It is a weekend where we ought to raise a toast to all these facts.
