{"id":35390,"date":"2013-04-26T07:30:29","date_gmt":"2013-04-26T07:30:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/prelive.ceosuite.com\/news\/mee-kim-innovates-serviced-office-business\/"},"modified":"2013-04-26T07:30:29","modified_gmt":"2013-04-26T07:30:29","slug":"mee-kim-innovates-serviced-office-business","status":"publish","type":"new","link":"https:\/\/prelive.ceosuite.com\/en-kr\/news\/mee-kim-innovates-serviced-office-business\/","title":{"rendered":"Mee Kim innovates serviced office business"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Mee Kim innovates serviced office business<\/h1>\n \n
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\n Apr 26, 2013<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n \"Mee\n <\/div>\n
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By Kim Rahn<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Setting up a company in a foreign country is a tough job \u2015 from getting an office and recruiting workers to consulting local lawyers and getting a telephone line.<\/p>\n

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Such difficulties opened Mee Kim\u2019s eyes to the potential for a one-stop business solution company, like her CEO Suite.<\/p>\n

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CEO Suite is a serviced office operator, offering offices and clerical appliances to businesspeople who need such facilities for any period of time \u2015 hours, days or maybe months \u2015 just as they would stay in hotels on business trips. But office rental is not the only service the company offers.<\/p>\n

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\u201cWhen you plan to open a branch in a foreign city, you not only need an office but also have to do all the chores. You have to do everything from registration to employee recruitment, which take three to five months.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThis is where we come in. You check into one of our branches and we\u2019ll get you an office, phone, secretary and name card in five minutes,\u201d CEO Suite President Kim said.<\/p>\n

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\u201dWe also help you get legal advice, accounting services and the best connections in the new environment so that you can start your business right away,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The company now has 650 offices, sizes of which vary, in 12 cities in eight countries, including Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Shanghai, Beijing, Manila and Bangkok. The latest one was set in Kyobo Building in downtown Seoul in March, with 45 offices and conference rooms.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cWe are the only company offering tailored business service. If a customer calls CEO Suite, our team will deal with everything, from pickup at the airport and hotel booking to arranging meetings with local businesspeople. Our service helps customers do business in the most efficient way,\u201d the 49-year-old said.<\/p>\n

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There are other companies providing serviced offices, but Kim said her 23-year experience in the industry and consequent network in various cities makes CEO Suite special.<\/p>\n

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She broke into the sector through Servcorp., an Australian company she joined after obtaining a master\u2019s degree in Australia because \u201cno Korean firm wanted to hire me.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\u201cI was stressed out from racial discrimination. At that time, the firm opened a Bangkok branch but totally failed because it didn\u2019t understand the Asian market\u2019s unique culture. I insisted on going there, pointing out to the management that as an Asian, I had a better approach to the market. Experiencing trials and errors, I learned a lot _ how to respect other culture, do business in a foreign market and manage staff. In one year, the Bangkok office became the No. 1 among the firm\u2019s worldwide operations,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

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Kim married a Chinese businessman in Jakarta and started CEO Suite in the Indonesian capital where she had a strong network, and the country, with a big market and abundant resources, had huge potential for foreign investors.<\/p>\n

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\u201cI started the business in Jakarta and expanded it mainly in Southeast Asia, because in Korea, it was and still is not easy for a woman and a medium-sized company operator to achieve big success,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

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Kim said in Australia, as an Asian and a woman, she was a total minority. \u201cIf it\u2019s not easy to change society, you can instead find a market where you can be a majority, where you can do well. Knowing yourself and promoting plans according to the way you understand yourself is the key,\u201d Kim said.<\/p>\n

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Regarding the Korean market, where it is still difficult to find serviced offices, she said the culture is very unique. Foreign investors usually work with local companies rather than set up new businesses on their own, whereas Korean firms prefer to own facilities and don\u2019t want to share offices with others.<\/p>\n

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\u201cBut once they try services like ours, they\u2019ll find them efficient and cost-saving. Korean firms like Samsung and SK began to use our Southeast Asian branches while multi-national firms used to be our customers in the past,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

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Kim, who spends half of the year on business trips, plans to spend more time in Korea than before along with the opening of the Korean branch.<\/p>\n

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She said she has received inquiries from international companies\u2019 Japanese branches seeking refuge until the neighboring country recovers from the recent catastrophic earthquake, adding CEO Suite\u2019s service is also suitable as such backup offices.<\/p>\n

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\u201cWe can offer any types of service customers want, from just office rental to one-stop business solution. We are a \u2018buffer\u2019 for customers who have to adapt themselves to a foreign environment,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

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http:\/\/www.koreatimes.co.kr\/www\/news\/special\/2011\/04\/139_85509.html<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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