Hankook Research

What Hankook Research does

Hankook Research (한국리서치) is South Korea's largest marketing and public opinion research company, founded in 1978 and headquartered in Gangnam, Seoul. The firm provides custom marketing research, political opinion polling and election consulting, public deliberation research, and global UX/usability evaluation through dedicated business divisions, supplemented by a self-service online platform called HRC Quick Survey. Its service portfolio spans face-to-face interviews, telephone surveys, online surveys, Central Location Tests (CLT), and longitudinal panel studies, supported by a nationwide field research infrastructure with four regional offices (Busan, Daegu, Gwangju, Daejeon) and a Master Sample panel system for respondent recruitment.

The company's most differentiated asset is its portfolio of government-grade longitudinal panel datasets, including the Korean Labor Panel (tracking 5,044+ households annually since 1998), Korean Education Panel (7,324+ students), Women and Family Panel (11,883+ women), and Youth Health Panel (5,051+ students over a 10-year horizon). These panels anchor recurring revenue with Korean government agencies and public institutions and create a time-series data moat difficult for competitors to replicate. The Innovation Division extends the business into FDA-aligned usability evaluation and global UX research, supported by exclusive Korean membership in the UX Alliance, partnerships with Samsung Seoul Hospital and Globizz for medical device market entry support, and a September 2025 MOU with KAIST for AI convergence research.

Commercially, Hankook Research operates a hybrid revenue model. Custom research projects for enterprises and government clients are delivered on a professional-services, quote-based engagement model via direct sales and consultation. The HRC Quick Survey platform layers in a usage-based, pay-as-you-go self-service channel targeting academic researchers and SMBs. The customer base spans government and public institutions (primary), large corporations and SMEs, academic researchers, and political organizations. The company is privately held, founder-led under Representative Director Ro Ik-sang, ISO/IEC 27001 certified as of April 2025, and claims research execution capability across 100+ countries through its global partner network.

Name

Hankook Research

Legal name

주식회사 한국리서치

Website

https://hrc.co.kr

Company type

Private

Founded year

1978

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Hankook Research is South Korea's largest marketing and public opinion research firm since 1978, providing custom surveys, longitudinal panel studies, public opinion polling, and UX/usability evaluation to government agencies, corporations, and academic institutions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Market Research Services

NAICS

Marketing Research and Public Opinion Polling (54191)

SIC

Services-Advertising (7310)

akta.pro primary industry

Custom Market Research (Ad Hoc Studies, Segmentation, U&A) (MPAAALAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Syndicated Market Research (Panels, Omnibus, Tracker Studies) (MPAAALAB), Brand & Advertising Research (Brand Health, Copy Testing, Campaign Effectiveness) (MPAAALAG), Product & Innovation Research (Concept, Pricing, Packaging, Conjoint) (MPAAALAI)

Keywords

• Market research services
• Public opinion polling
• Survey panel management
• UX research consulting
• Longitudinal panel studies

Headquarters

HQ city

Yeoksamdong

HQ country

South Korea

HQ region

Asia

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Marketing Research Services: Custom market research projects for corporations including consumer surveys, corporate client surveys, retail store surveys, and media surveys conducted on a project basis
2. Public Opinion Polling: Political opinion surveys and election consulting services for government and political organizations
3. Quick Survey Platform: Self-service survey platform for academic researchers and private companies with faster turnaround and lower costs

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Hankook Research conducts custom marketing research and public opinion polling for government, corporate, and academic clients across South Korea, using face-to-face, telephone, online, and CLT (Central Location Test) methods. It maintains long-running longitudinal panel surveys (Korean Labor Panel since 1998, Education Panel, Women & Family Panel, Youth Health Panel) and operates the self-service HRC Quick Survey platform for smaller academic and commercial users. Its Innovation Business Division provides global UX research and FDA-approved medical device usability evaluation.

Product overview

Hankook Research is Korea's largest marketing and public opinion research company since 1978, operating as a unified platform offering multiple interconnected services. The core offerings include marketing research (consumer, corporate, retail, media surveys), public opinion polling and election advisory, and the HRC Quick Survey online platform for rapid research. The company maintains extensive longitudinal panel surveys including the Korean Labor Panel, Korean Education Panel, Women and Family Panel, and Youth Health Panel studies. The Innovation Business Division provides specialized UX research and usability evaluation services including FDA medical device usability testing. Professional infrastructure includes nationwide field offices and the Master Sample panel system.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• HRC Master Sample: Panel survey participation platform operated by Hankook Research for respondents to participate in various surveys
• HRC Quick Survey
• 여론속의 여론

Products and services

• Marketing Research Service (마케팅조사)
• Public Opinion Research Service (여론조사)
• HRC Quick Survey
• Korean Labor Panel Survey (한국노동패널조사)
• Korean Education Panel Study (한국교육종단조사)
• Women and Family Panel Survey (여성가족패널조사)
• Youth Health Panel Survey (청소년건강패널조사)
• UX Research and Usability Evaluation
• International Development Cooperation Research
• Public Deliberation and Citizen Panel Research

Quantifiable outcome

• Korean Labor Panel tracks 5,044+ households since 1998 for labor market research
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and strategic.

• Korea University Hansung Peninsula Health and Social Research Institute (고려대학교 한반도보건사회연구소)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 December 2025MOU for cooperation in health and social research. Joint research on public surveys, policy research, and data-based studies. Includes co-hosting academic seminars and policy forums, researcher education exchange, and new business planning.
• UX Alliance (UX 얼라이언스)strategicTechnology or Integration · 9 October 2025Exclusive Korean representative in the global UX research network. Participated in UXMC 2025 in Bengaluru, India, winning Best Physical Product Testing Award. Network includes 32 countries for rapid heuristic diagnosis services.
• KAIST Art & Technology Center (카이스트 아트 앤 테크놀로지 센터)strategicStrategic or Co-development Partner · 28 August 2025MOU for joint research and industry-academia cooperation to strengthen UX research and AI convergence studies. Combines KAIST's technology research with Hankook Research's applied research capabilities to explore new research methodologies and models.
• Korea Conflict Studies Association (한국갈등학회)strategicStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2025Joint hosting of seminar on '20 Years of Public Deliberation in Korean Society: Diagnosis and Development Plans'. Included special participation by Stanford University's Dr. Alice Siu.
• GlobizzstrategicTechnology or Integration · 26 May 2025Strategic MOU for FDA consulting to provide total solutions for medical device FDA approval. Globizz is a world-leading global FDA consulting firm. The partnership enables comprehensive services from usability evaluation to regulatory affairs for medical device companies entering the US market.
• Medical Innovation Committee (의료혁신위원회)strategicStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 May 2025Partnership for citizen panel recruitment (300 participants) for medical innovation discussions. Panel selected via random phone number extraction (RDD) considering region, age, and gender. First deliberative discussion scheduled for July 2025 on regional essential medical care issues.
• Samsung Seoul Hospital Usability Center (삼성서울병원 사용자적합성평가센터)strategicStrategic or Co-development Partner · 7 May 2025MOU for cooperation in medical device usability evaluation. Aims to provide One-Stop solutions for domestic medical device companies entering global markets like the US and Europe by combining Samsung Seoul Hospital's medical expertise with Hankook Research's global UX research capabilities.
• I&NA (아이앤나)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 April 2025Cooperation agreement for marketing and research using MOM (mother) panel. I&NA operates a 160,000-member MOM panel with 82% market share among mothers, connected to 340+ postpartum care centers nationwide. Joint research on postpartum care and childcare market insights.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Korea Gallup: Korea Gallup is the other major domestic market research and public opinion polling firm in South Korea, conducting election polling, consumer research, and syndicated studies. It is Hankook Research's most direct domestic competitor for both government panel work and brand research.
• Embrain: Embrain is a leading Korean online panel and digital survey company (formerly merged with Japan's Macromill). It competes with Hankook Research on consumer survey reach, self-service survey access (akin to HRC Quick Survey), and corporate client work, with a stronger digital-panel focus.
• Toluna: Toluna operates one of the world's largest online panels for consumer insights and survey-based research. It competes with Hankook Research's Quick Survey platform and consumer survey business, particularly for multinational clients seeking panel-based research across geographies.
• UserTesting: UserTesting is a global human insight platform offering UX research and usability testing services. It overlaps with Hankook Research's Innovation Division (UX research, usability evaluation), though Hankook has distinct FDA-approved medical-device specialization.

Broad incumbents

• Nielsen: Nielsen is a global measurement and data analytics firm with established Korean operations across consumer and media research. It overlaps with Hankook Research on retail/store audits, media surveys, and consumer panels, but operates at much larger global scale.
• Kantar: Kantar is a global insights and consulting firm providing brand, media, and consumer research. It competes with Hankook Research for multinational brand-tracking, advertising effectiveness, and innovation research engagements in Korea and across Asian markets.
• Ipsos: Ipsos is a global market research firm with broad coverage including Korean operations. It overlaps directly with Hankook Research on public opinion polling, brand and advertising research, and customer experience studies, but serves a wider global client base.

Regional players

• Intage: Intage is Japan's largest domestic market research firm, offering consumer panel, marketing research, and consulting services. Comparable to Hankook Research's market-leader status in Korea, with similar panel-based and custom-research services but anchored in the Japanese market.
• Cross Marketing: Cross Marketing is a Japanese digital-first market research firm operating online panels and custom research. It is comparable to Hankook Research on custom and self-service survey work, but primarily serves Japanese clients rather than competing directly in Korea.
• Macromill: Macromill is a Japan-based digital market research firm with significant online panel and auto-research operations across Asia. It is comparable to Hankook Research on syndicated panel and consumer research, and is the parent/affiliate of domestic Korean peer Embrain.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@hankookresearch
• Facebookfacebook.com/Hankookresearch
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hankookresearch
• Instagraminstagram.com/hrc.official_
• Xx.com/gypark_hrc

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Hankook Research