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6 K-Dramas Where the Leads Are Busy Building Their Own Empires

The dramas listed below skip the typical tropes to spotlight leads who are focused on ambition, innovation, and building their own success from the ground up. Hopefully, these dramas will also give us the motivation to strive high for our own success!




Kang Hee-soo's (Shin Se-kyung) success in this drama is achieved through strategic, political entrepreneurship rather than commerce. This drama left viewers on the edge of their seats thanks to the complex game that was played throughout! She uses her unmatched skills while playing baduk (GO) to gain access to the royal court and eventually the king!


Later in the show, she successfully established herself as a formidable figure to execute her revenge within the court's own power structure! This is why this drama has made number one on the Dojeon's list of leads building their own empires in K-dramas. Did you watch this movie? Which power moves were you most impressed with?




Seo Mok-ha's (Park Eun-bin) success in this drama was thanks to her enterprise and comeback, having previously been shipwrecked for 15 years! Sounds far-fetched? Perhaps, but this was so emotional for many viewers, while at the same time providing them with a deep survival story.


Thanks to her raw talent, when it came to gaining public attention, she was able to navigate the modern, fast-paced music industry. Her journey showed the entrepreneurial spirit needed to market a personal brand, collaborate with a mentor, and rebuild a career from absolutely nothing, after being stranded on an island for over a decade. This drama became one that K-drama fans spoke about for a long time, hence it has made our list at number two! If you have not watched this yet, make sure you do!



  1. Agency (2023)


This K-drama features Go Ah-in (Lee Bo-young), who demonstrates the epitome of corporate entrepreneurship. Go Ah-in climbs from the very bottom of the corporate ladder to later becoming the first female executive in a major advertising agency, which is all thanks to her pure ambition and determination.


She successfully challenges the patriarchal structure of the company by consistently delivering ground-breaking campaigns, outmaneuvering rivals, and proving her capability to command and ultimately aspire to the CEO position as the drama nears the end. This drama showcases female empowerment in what's normally a male-dominated workplace. Not watched it yet? Make sure you do over the holiday season!




This drama showcases a CEO named Kang Tae-moo (Ahn Hyo-seop), who is a hard-headed entrepreneur! The drama is all about romance as well as the company growth, and at the same time, innovation. Tae-moo focuses on ambitious expansion plans for his company as well as a new product line, which are all very demanding. The romantic flair comes from a beautiful, headstrong researcher named Shin Ha-ri (Kim Se-jeong). She helps to drive the company's product line forward, earning her a promotion.




This drama is one of the more famous ones on our list. Park Sae-ro-yi (Park Seo-joon) turns his long-term revenge plan into a successful grassroots business enterprise, and this has become very inspirational for many Koreans.


He begins with a single, small pub called DanBam, and over a decade, uses smart real estate investment, strong ethical leadership, and strategic franchising to grow it into a major food service conglomerate. His success is based on unwavering principles and a methodical 15-year plan, which for many Korean pubs is a lifetime, since the average life span is around 3-4 years. This drama, since its release, has trended on social media and Spotify thanks to its amazing OST!




Last on our list is a drama which was released earlier this year, and ever since it's release it has continued to trend on social media.


This drama has made it onto our list not only for it's success in terms of ratings, but also because it showcased the major success of a once struggling family. This drama followed the

1997 IMF crisis and his father's death, carefree heir Kang Tae-poong inherits the bankrupt Typhoon Company and must rapidly transform into a responsible leader. With the help of a loyal accountant, he fights off ruthless creditors and rival companies, securing small but vital deals to stabilize the family business, which was easier said than done, though never the less possible with his strong determination and business focus, which saved it from financial ruin.



Final thoughts


There are countless K-dramas on the market, with new ones coming out daily; however, the strong entrepreneurial work ethic is cleverly shown in these dramas. Since Koreans for the most part, have a strong work ethic due to the past, many Koreans resonate with the storylines, hence the popularity of these dramas. For the Dojeon team, due to the show's success and trends on social media and music platforms. This list was of course very competitive to put together, so we could not add every successful rags to riches K-drama.


The Dojeon team would love to hear from you about what your favorite entrepreneurial K-drama is and the reason why in the comments below!


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