Breaking the mold of health food funding by reaching 400 million in just two weeks
Although we expected the funding campaign to fail,
Seol-Ae Maker Raised 400 Million Won in Just Two Weeks
“The wadiz funding campaign was a turning point for us.”
“It was a huge help in minimizing the risks we faced in the early stages of our startup.”
As interest in health and wellness continues to grow, people in their 40s and 60s—and even those in their 20s and 40s—are increasingly focused on managing their health. In particular, various health supplements, including those designed to boost immunity, are gaining attention. Amid this trend, Seol-Ae CEO Ji Jong-hwan, after a year of research, reinvented Ssanghwa-cha as Ssanghwa-hwan, tailored to the lifestyles of modern consumers. When he launched a funding campaign during the last Chuseok holiday, he garnered a tremendous response, raising 400 million won in just two weeks. Today, we met with him to hear about his brand and get tips on successful wadiz funding.
We’re “Seol-Ae,” a small and unhurried brand.
Hello. I’m Ji Jong-hwan, CEO of Seol-arae. As a licensed herbalist who majored in Korean medicine at Kyung Hee University, I create traditional Korean herbal foods designed to support long-term health. In a nutshell, Seol-arae is a brand of traditional Korean herbal foods crafted by experts. Just as there are baristas for coffee and sommeliers for wine, our products are researched and developed directly by herbalists, allowing us to incorporate traditional herbal ingredients more accurately and deeply. Driven by our mission to create herbal foods as pure as snow, we strive to provide honest products—even if it takes time.
A 10-Year Journey as an Entrepreneur: The CEO Born in 1993
Although Seol-Ae is a brand that launched in 2021, my entrepreneurial journey has already spanned over 10 years. The experience I gained during my college years—when I took a leave of absence to try starting various businesses—has been a tremendous asset to me ever since. Seol-Ae is my third startup. However, since this was my first time handling both manufacturing and distribution, the first one or two years were incredibly tough. In particular, I vividly remember investing about 100 million won when I launched Seol-Ae, only to see first-month sales amount to a mere 500,000 won. Still, I didn’t give up . Seeing customers who had tried our products once come back to us convinced me that this business had potential if I saw it through to the end.
Having started several businesses, I’ve come to realize that the most important quality for an entrepreneur is the ability to make quick and clear decisions.Set a timeframe and key metrics to test the business’spotential, and then take action based on those. This advice comes from experience, so I hope you’ll take it to heart.
Raised 400 million won in just two weeks on wadiz?!
To be honest, we didn’t start the wadiz funding campaign expecting it to be a success. Based on our own online store sales data, we knew our product was popular among people in their 40s and 60s, whereas we anticipated that wadiz’s target audience would be younger. We decided to proceed after the director of the startup center saw our product and suggested, “Why don’t you try a wadiz funding campaign?” The funny thing is, even though the director told me to “prepare 300 million won worth of inventory,” I didn’t have high expectations, so I only prepared 50 million won worth.
When the funding campaign launched at 11 a.m. on the day of the funding, the amount initially showed 0 won, so I thought, “Here we go again—another failure.” But I was shocked to see the number of participants hit 200. I refreshed the page, and the amount had risen to 10 million won; I refreshed again, and it went up to 15 million won. It kept climbing—reaching 30 million won in just 30 minutes and 60 million won within a day.As a result, we raised a whopping 400 million won in just two weeks.
To make up for the shortfall in inventory, we visited the owners of packaging companies and used all our Ssanghwa tea ingredients to make Ssanghwa pills instead. I remember not being able to sell any Ssanghwa tea during the holiday season because of that. We went to such lengths because,when we decided to take on the wadiz funding challenge, our team agreed that customer service and shipping absolutely had to be flawless.As a result, everything was delivered successfully to everyone, and for those who encountered issues, we even sent replacements via express delivery or, in some cases, by taxi . I believethis experience was a major learning opportunity and a catalyst for our growth.
Confidence Gained from Successful Funding
The biggest change has been the confidence we gained through the wadiz funding campaign. Even with retailers we couldn’t have imagined approaching before, simply sending a link to our successful wadiz funding campaign was enough to prove our brand’s trustworthiness and value. In thatsense, the wadiz funding campaign was a turning point for us.
It’s generally accepted that acquiring a single customer costs between 30,000 and 40,000 won. However, through a single wadiz funding campaign, we were able to connect with over 2,300 supporters. It was particularly meaningful to us that these supporters were from the 20–40 age group, rather than our existing target demographic of the 40–60 age group. It was the moment we realized new possibilities and the expansion of our customer base. The wadiz funding campaign was more than just a sales platform; it was a valuable experience that validated our brand’s value and opened up new opportunities.
Funding That Minimizes Early-Stage Risks
If you’re an early-stage entrepreneur, I highly recommend giving wadiz funding a try. Unlike other platforms ,wadiz offers an advance payment system, which allows early-stage entrepreneurs to run a funding campaign without a significant financial burden—that’s amajor advantage. I believe this system aligns well with the purpose of funding and is extremely helpful in minimizing the risks associated with the early stages of a startup.
However, as a maker, it’s crucial to clearly explain the value of your Rewards to supporters and maintain open communication— this isthe most important thing. Building trust with supporters is the key to successful funding.
Wait, there’s an event too!
🎁 wadiz x Seol-Ae YouTube Video Comment Event (until midnight on 11/29) 🎁
Seol-Ae’s Ssanghwahwan, which generated an unprecedented response during last Chuseok’s funding campaign, is back with a Christmas edition! To celebrate the launch of the campaign, we’ve prepared a small event with the Seol-Ae maker.
Check out the Seol-Ae maker’s latest News for more details 👉 https://www.wadiz.kr/web/campaign/detailPost/316880/news/456286
📺 Watch the full video