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SEOUL: Myeongdong is one of the best-known shopping belts in Seoul, and like many shopping areas in South Korea, home-grown cosmetic shops are a mainstay here.
Many Korean cosmetic brands are no more than 10 years old, but they have established themselves very quickly, thanks to their lower prices compared to Japanese and European brands.
The beauty industry in South Korea is more than skin deep. It's closely linking the Korean drama, tourism and media, as well as Korean culture and tradition.
"Korean stars are very popular in Asia. Rain is the most popular, so we use him to be the face of our brand to attract people to buy our products," said Tad Hwang, the general manager of cosmetic brand Nature Republic's Overseas Department.
"Many Taiwanese come to our store to shop because Korean actor Lee Min Ho endorses our products. And they would ask for his posters," said Jin Hai Ying, a sales assistant with cosmetic brand Etude.
Japanese tourists are the biggest fans of Korean cosmetics.
"It suits me. It's cheap and cute. It's used by the Japanese stars, so it's popular in Japan," said one woman.
"It's cheap. In general, it's cheaper than (the Japanese brands) so I buy a lot," said another.
But demand from China, Hong Kong and Taiwan is quickly catching up.
Sales of Korean beauty products to these three markets now account for half of South Korea's total cosmetic exports.
The growing market has attracted new players like Nature Republic. Although it started business amidst the global recession in early 2009, the company has expanded to nearly 100 stores, and it plans to double that number in 2010.
"In a recession, people don't want to spend a lot of money for expensive cosmetics products, so we can provide quality products at reasonable prices. That's our strength point and I believe we can grow bigger and bigger," said Hwang.
And to better serve the growing number of Asian visitors, Japanese and Mandarin-speaking staff are available in almost every cosmetics shop in Myeongdong.
Korea's cosmetics industry grew 12.5 per cent to US$6.4 billion in 2009, despite the global recession.
As the appeal of Korean cosmetics across Asia continues to spread, the industry is expected to experience double-digit growth in 2010.
The increasing synergy between the Korean media industry, Korean culture as well as Korea's tourism and beauty industries will allow Korean products to surf the "Korean wave" to new markets.
- CNA/ha
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