Grip Company, which operates the commerce creator platform Grip, said on March 10 it has appointed former DK Techin vice president Seok-jong Kang (강석종), a former Kakao employee, as its new chief operating officer (COO). Grip Company plans to use the hire to strengthen cooperation between Grip and the Kakao group and to advance the structure of its live commerce business.

Kang has spent about 20 years at a range of South Korean companies, including Kakao, ConnectWave and Hana Securities, gaining experience across commerce platform planning, service strategy, investment and mergers and acquisitions, and overall product leadership.

In 2025, he served as vice president for the KakaoWork business at Kakao's IT development subsidiary DK Techin, overseeing business strategy and organisational operations for the B2B collaboration tool KakaoWork.

At Grip Company, Kang will set up an internal task force for collaboration with Kakao to identify synergies across major business areas, including KakaoTalk channels and short-form content.

Kang said, "Grip is a platform that has realised the essence of commerce, centred on trust with repeat customers, beyond live commerce as a simple sales channel." He added, "I will bring my 20 years of accumulated experience across e-commerce and the energy of connection confirmed through Kakao into Grip, and help it leap into a platform that works in global markets."