Super Premium Beauty and Personal Care in South Korea

PROSPECTS

Mid-level players threaten super premium beauty and personal care players, while focusing on eco-friendly and locally-sourced materials to gain cut-through

The beauty and personal care industry in South Korea is very matured, with a lot of start-ups and quality mass and mid-level players, threatening the growth of super premium beauty and personal care brands. Start-ups look to cut-through by positioning themselves with unique identities – for example, providing clean beauty, eco-friendly and conscious beauty, with mass and mid-level brands focusing on their local manufacturing, locally-source ingredients, value-for-money merit, and satisfying quality to retain a consumer base and value sales.

Travel retail and lack of Chinese tourists impacts super premium beauty and personal care

Travel retail remained a significant retail distribution channel in super premium beauty and personal care. The number of Chinese inbound tourists has been in decline, which has impacted super premium beauty and personal care.

Sephora opens is first outlet is South Korea, set to shake-up the retailing landscape

In 2019, department stores were losing momentum to duty-free and internet retailing in most of the luxury goods industry. However, for super premium beauty and personal care, consumers still tended to visit department stores for testers and free sample events.

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

Sulwhasoo and The History of Whoo retain their dominance over the landscape, as both players invest in their cosmetic lines

There were several attempts by domestic brands to penetrate super premium beauty and personal care but Sulwhasoo remained the only significant one in 2018.

The boycott on Japanese products continues, limiting their growth in the landscape

The boycott movement against Japanese products continued to increase during 2019. Consumers willingly participated in boycotting Japanese offerings, including super premium beauty and personal care.

Diversity in super premium fragrances supports consumers demand for glamour

The trend towards unisex and niche products continued in super premium fragrances. This trend was led by department store-owned importers such as Shinsegae and Hyundai.

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