Korean startup AgeFree, the operator of the midlife career education platform ‘1000jobs’, has achieved a remarkable feat. In just three months since its inception, it has secured an undisclosed amount in seed funding from Kakao Ventures, with participation from Korea Investment Partners and Channel-Bom. This swift success is a testament to AgeFree’s potential and the confidence it has garnered in the market.
1000jobs offers job training opportunities regardless of age or experience, spanning fields such as interior construction, forklift operation, and dog grooming through online and offline platforms. It has partnered with offline training centres nationwide to connect individuals seeking job training. Students can avail themselves of government support programmes for classes and acquire practical information on re-employment and entrepreneurship, including desired job information, training locations, and employment rates.
AgeFree was founded by Kim Ji-Hyun with a vision to create an environment where anyone, regardless of age, can embark on new journeys through learning. The company aims to help middle-aged and older adults flexibly navigate income gaps after retirement and alleviate economic insecurities.
Speaking about the platform, Kim Ji-Hyun, CEO of AgeFree, said:
We will directly create an environment that is easily accessible to those seeking new job opportunities while innovating the fragmented existing job training market through digitalization to meet the increasing demand. We will grow as a company redefining life and occupations in the aging society.
According to Statistics Korea, by 2025, South Korea is poised to enter a super-aged society, with the population aged 65 and older exceeding 20%. However, with the average retirement age below 50, an income gap exists until the age of pension receipt is 65. Despite the increasing elderly population, inadequate financial preparation post-retirement has led to growing concerns among middle-aged and older adults, prompting expectations for solutions.
Jang Dong-wook, Director at Kakao Ventures, stated, added:
AgeFree, with meaningful execution and successful experiences in the online education market, is addressing significant issues such as senior income gaps and re-employment difficulties, starting from the small unit of job training connections.” He expressed deep empathy for the problem, seeing it as a crucial issue to tackle in the future, with over 700,000 retirees expected annually. He judged AgeFree as a team equipped with experience and capabilities to address this issue.
With this investment, AgeFree plans to expand the ‘1000jobs’ service, which includes enhancing services to enable middle-aged and older adults seeking opportunities for entrepreneurship or re-employment to easily and quickly get job information. Additionally, it aims to revolutionize the current job training industry by anticipatorily digitizing the spike in demand for job training in an ageing society. This market currently serves about 20 million people in the 40–50 age frame.
