Jeon Tae-il Memorial Hall

What Jeon Tae-il Memorial Hall does

Jeon Tae-il Memorial Hall (전태일기념관) is a non-profit cultural memorial institution located at 105 Cheonggyecheon-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea, established by the Seoul Metropolitan Government on April 30, 2019 and operated under a trust arrangement by the Jeon Tae-il Foundation (전태일재단). The hall commemorates Jeon Tae-il (1948–1970), a labor activist who self-immolated at Peace Market to protest exploitative working conditions, and functions as Korea's primary public institution dedicated to labor rights history and civic education. Its site is integrated with the Labor Rights Path (노동인권의 길), a 1.8km commemorative walkway containing 8,013 bronze plaques extending to Jeon Tae-il Bridge.

The institution's core offerings comprise permanent and rotating exhibitions, labor rights experience education (175 sessions and 4,000+ participants in 2022), citizen participation education including family programs, a collection archive of labor movement materials, an online Labor History Archive, and a ~600-book civil library. Supporting infrastructure includes a 60-seat performance hall, a 15-seat seminar room, and meeting rooms available for rental, alongside a VR/online exhibition tour for remote visitors. Distribution relies on the physical walk-in site (free admission, with summer hours 10:00–18:00 and winter hours 10:00–17:30), the taeil.org website, and social media channels (Facebook, Instagram, YouTube).

The business model is entirely non-commercial: admission is free, and operating funding derives from Seoul Metropolitan Government allocations supplemented by minimal space rental fees to cultural organizations and labor groups. Customers comprise three primary segments — general citizens (free walk-in visitors), students and educators (formalized labor rights curricula, primarily through the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education), and cultural/labor organizations (facility renters). The institution operates as a public-civil society partnership with no commercial exit pathway, equity funding, or for-profit scaling ambition; its director is O Dong-jin (오동진).

Name

Jeon Tae-il Memorial Hall

Legal name

전태일기념관

Website

https://taeil.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Jeon Tae-il Memorial Hall is a Seoul-based non-profit cultural institution established by the Seoul Metropolitan Government and operated by the Jeon Tae-il Foundation. It commemorates labor activist Jeon Tae-il through free exhibitions, labor rights education programs, and cultural events for citizens, students, and labor organizations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cultural Memorial Museum

NAICS

Historical Sites (712120), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYTHAJACAC

Historic Sites, Heritage Landmarks & Archaeological Sites

Travel & Hospitality/Tours, Attractions & Experiences/Attractions & Landmarks (Observation Decks, Monuments, Scenic Sites)

SECONDARYBPAGAHAE

Historic Preservation & Landmarks Conservation

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Arts, Culture & Heritage Nonprofits

Keywords

• Labor rights education
• Memorial exhibitions
• Cultural heritage programs
• Historical museum services
• Community cultural events

Headquarters

HQ city

Seoul

HQ country

South Korea

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Government Funding / Public Institution: Established by Seoul City and operated under trust by the Jeon Tae-il Foundation. Revenue derives from public funding allocations rather than commercial sales.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Jeon Tae-il Memorial Hall operates as a free-admission public memorial and cultural education institution in Seoul, offering permanent and rotating exhibitions on Jeon Tae-il's life and Korean labor rights history. It provides labor rights experience education, citizen participation education, space rental for cultural events, and operates a collection archive, citizen library, and online labor history archive. Established by Seoul Metropolitan Government and operated under trust by the Jeon Tae-il Foundation, it commemorates the labor activist who self-immolated in 1970.

Product overview

The Jeon Tae-il Memorial Hall (전태일기념관) operates as a unified cultural institution offering memorial exhibitions and labor rights education. The core offerings consist of permanent and planning exhibitions (상설전시, 기획전시) for displaying the martyr's life and labor rights history, combined with educational programs including labor rights experience education (노동인권체험교육) and citizen participation education (시민참여교육). Supporting services include space rental (대관) for performances and events, a collection archive (소장품 아카이브), a citizen library, cultural events, and an online labor history archive. The memorial hall was established by Seoul Metropolitan Government and is operated by the Jeon Tae-il Foundation, commemorating the labor activist who sacrificed his life in 1970 for workers' rights.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Permanent Exhibition (상설전시) Standing exhibitions showcasing Jeon Tae-il's life and Korean labor rights history, including the main permanent exhibit 'Jeon Tae-il's Dream, And'. Aimed at general public visitors, students, and researchers.
• Planning Exhibition (기획전시) Rotating themed exhibitions exploring labor rights, democracy, peace, and contemporary social issues. Past exhibitions include 'I am an Irregular Worker' and 'Taeil Who Opened a Suitcase and Came Out'. For the general public and cultural community.
• Labor Rights Experience Education (노동인권체험교육) Educational program where visitors learn about Jeon Tae-il's efforts to improve labor conditions through guided exhibition tours and experiential activities. 175 sessions were conducted in 2022 reaching over 4,000 participants. Primarily targets school groups and the general public.
• Citizen Participation Education (시민참여교육) Various citizen participation education programs teaching labor values and human rights. Programs include family education and seasonal workshops such as the 2026 summer vacation 'Zigzag Sewing to Learn Labor History' family program.
• Space Rental (대관) Rental services for the memorial hall's facilities including a 60-seat performance hall equipped with projector, wireless microphones, and lighting; a seminar room (15 seats) with 75-inch TV; and meeting rooms. Available for cultural arts performances, institutional events, meetings, and workshops.
• Collection Archive (소장품 아카이브) Archive of collected materials, artifacts, and historical documents related to Jeon Tae-il and the Korean labor movement. Includes donated works from artists and labor movement supporters.
• Cultural Events (문화행사) Cultural programs including public art installations, monthly Taeil newsletter, seasonal festivals, and special events such as the annual labor culture street festival. Targeted at the general public and cultural community.
• Exhibition Interpretation Reservation (전시해설 예약) Guided tour and exhibition explanation reservation service for visitors requiring professional interpretation of exhibition content. Targeted at general public, school groups, and cultural tourists.
• Labor History Archives (노동역사사료) Online archive of labor history materials and historical documents accessible at archive.taeil.org. Provides public digital access to labor movement records.

Quantifiable outcome

• 175 labor rights education sessions reaching 4,000+ participants in 2022
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education (서울특별시교육청)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 31 December 2023Joint programs for teacher training and student labor rights education. In 2023, conducted 22 sessions reaching 595 teachers and students. Provides teaching materials, exhibition spaces, instructors, and sign language interpreter support.
• Seoul City (서울특별시)coreOthers · 30 April 2019Seoul City established the Jeon Tae-il Memorial Hall as a public institution. The City serves as the founding and funding authority, with the memorial hall operating as a cultural landmark under municipal administration.
• Jeon Tae-il Foundation (전태일재단)coreOthersThe Jeon Tae-il Foundation operates the memorial hall under a trust (수탁 운영) arrangement with Seoul City. The foundation manages day-to-day operations, programming, and personnel. A workers' union exists within the foundation, with reported labor disputes noted in 2025.
• Democratic Movements Memorial Foundation (민주화운동기념사업회)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAssisted in transporting the donated painting 'Weeping Mother, Lee So-seon' by Korean-German artist Song Hyun-sook from Germany to the memorial hall. A staff member (이선태 차장) personally oversaw the artwork's transport.
• Berlin Free University Korean Studies Department (베를린 자유대학 한국학과)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProfessor Choi Hyun-deok (최현덕) facilitated the connection that led to the donation of Song Hyun-sook's painting to the memorial hall.
• Korean Arts Council (한국문화예술위원회)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerFunded the performance 'Docu-Pansori TALE' through the Korean Arts Council's Performing Arts Medium-to-Long Term Creation Support Project.
• Jung-gu Labor Comprehensive Support Center (중구노동자종합지원센터)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHosted the exhibition 'Comforting Your Heart' (당신의 마음을 위로합니다) as the organizer, with Hangul Batt Design Cultural Contents Research Institute as sponsor.
• Korean Certified Labor Attorney Society (한국공인노무사회)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-organized the 'Soft Labor Education Taster' (말랑말랑 노동교육 맛보기) 2023 Labor Education Content Exhibition alongside the memorial hall, Seoul Education Office, Incheon Education Office, Seoul Labor Rights Center, Busan Labor Rights Center, and Seoul Youth Labor Rights Network.
• 8 Small Museums Network (인권/평화/사람 작은박물관 스탬프투어)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerParticipating museums include: Modern History Memorial, Kim Geun-tae Memorial Library, Moon Ik-hwan House of Unification, Park Jong-cheol Center, Colonial Era History Museum, Beautiful Youth Jeon Tae-il Memorial Hall, Lee Han-yeol Memorial Hall, and War and Women Veterans Museum. Joint stamp tour program launched June 2024.
• Ilkwang Transportation Co. (일광통业有限公司)minorOthersPartnership for the 'Taeil's After-Work Path' walking event (전태일의 퇴근길 걷기대회), with '103 bread march' organized to commemorate the 103rd anniversary of Joseon Workers' Mutual Aid Association.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Independence Hall of Korea: A large national civic museum in Cheonan dedicated to Korean independence and modern history. Comparable as a state-backed Korean history/heritage institution with permanent exhibitions, education programs, and cultural-event programming, though at much larger scale.
• National Museum of Korean Contemporary History: Government-run museum in Seoul covering modern Korean history including democratization and labor movements. Overlaps thematically (Korean modern/labor history interpretation) but operates at a much larger national scale with broader institutional backing.
• Seodaemun Prison History Hall: A larger Seoul civic memorial/museum located at a historic Independence Movement site, focused on Korean modern history and human-rights-related exhibitions. Comparable as a Seoul-based civic-history museum with experiential education programming.

Direct peers

• War and Women's Human Rights Museum: A Korean nonprofit memorial museum in Seoul focused on wartime sexual violence and women's human rights. Directly comparable as a peer in the 8 Small Museums Network, sharing the same civic-memorial, education-led, free-admission operating model and partner-museum stamp tour.
• Park Jong-cheol Human Rights Center: Memorial/education center commemorating labor activist Park Jong-cheol. Direct peer through the 8 Small Museums Network, sharing the same civic-memorial, civic-education positioning and target audience of students and citizens.
• Modern History Memorial: Korean civic memorial museum covering modern democratic and social movements. Direct peer via the 8 Small Museums Network, sharing the small nonprofit memorial/education model and Seoul-area civic-heritage positioning.
• War and Women Veterans Museum: Korean memorial museum focused on women veterans and their human rights. Direct network peer through the 8 Small Museums Network with the same small-museum, free-admission, education-led model and stamp-tour cross-promotion.
• Kim Geun-tae Memorial Library: Another 8 Small Museums Network member, dedicated to democracy/labor activist Kim Geun-tae. Same civic-memorial operating model (free admission, experiential education, public funding) and cross-promoted via the network's joint stamp tour.
• Lee Han-yeol Memorial Hall: Seoul memorial dedicated to pro-democracy student activist Lee Han-yeol. Direct peer through the 8 Small Museums Network, with matching small-museum, free-admission, civic-education positioning.
• Moon Ik-hwan House of Unification: Korean civic memorial site dedicated to democracy/unification activist Moon Ik-hwan. Direct network peer through the 8 Small Museums Network, sharing small-scale civic-memorial operations and cross-promotion via the stamp tour.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCzdjuJniO1AhVihr14_AYpg
• Facebookfacebook.com/chuntaeilmemorial
• Instagraminstagram.com/bytaeil
• Xx.com/bychuntaeil

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 Jeon Tae-il Memorial Hall