KOTITI and Kyungbang Push Korean Certification Industry onto Global Stage
Creatrip Team
a month ago
Kim Jun, chairman of Kyungbang and chair of KOTITI (Korea Textile Inspection & Testing Institute), says Korea’s first textile testing institute is expanding its certification services worldwide. Founded in 1961 with roots in the 107-year-old Kyungbang textile firm, KOTITI now tests and certifies products across textiles, clothing, cosmetics, food, electronics, automobile parts and more to ensure safety, quality and regulatory compliance. The institute serves about 16,000 clients and earned roughly KRW 95.8 billion last year. With laboratories in six countries (China, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Indonesia, Myanmar, Cambodia) and heavy investment in R&D and high‑end equipment, KOTITI aims to become a global comprehensive testing organization to support Korea’s export-driven economy. Kim emphasized that Korea’s fast “ppalli-ppalli” (빨리빨리) culture and strong planning can help K-fashion grow like K-beauty, but urged close collaboration across the whole fashion value chain and preservation of domestic textile capacity (“textile sovereignty”) for national resilience. He also noted AI will be a tool to improve decision-making and efficiency in fashion but that human creativity and brand value remain crucial. Kim credits Kyungbang’s century-long survival to humility and caring for employees, including paying wages through the Korean War.
