The happy state of affairs for cosmetic retailers and cosmetic material suppliers is likely to continue for the time being. According to a survey by Nielsen, as many as six out of ten consumers in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Singapore answered they are aware of Korean cosmetic brands, of which 40 percent are willing to purchase Korean-made cosmetic products in the future.
Indeed, Korean exports of cosmetic items are explosive. The cosmetic exports last year was US$1.79 billion, up 52 percent from the previous year. For the first quarter of this year, the exports increased almost 100 percent from the same period in 2014.
The overseas sales for AmorePacific last year were 832.5 billion won, 17.6 percent higher than that for the previous year. Its operating profit overseas was 61.8 billion won. Its Oriental medicine cosmetic brand "Sulwhasoo" alone hit the 800-billion-won mark in sales last year. It is likely to surpass the 1-trillion-won level for the first time for a single brand. As for LG Household & Healthcare, its overseas sales rose to 399.1 billion won last year from 90.8 billion won in 2010.
There are, however, voices of caution as the special demand from overseas, especially from China and other Southeast Asian countries, is focused on high-priced items while low-priced brands will likely keep suffering in obscurity.
By Ahn Jeong-kyun
