08.04.16
What may be a nightmare for supply chain managers is a dream come true for cosmetics-crazed consumers. South Korea's top cosmetics company Amorepacific Group launches some 400 new Innisfree branded products a year, about half of which are no longer available a year later.
It's one of dozens of Korean mass cosmetics brands with a short product development cycle—a "fast beauty" approach that is increasingly popular among Chinese and other Asian millennials, gaining exposure in the United States and Europe, and attracting high-profile foreign investment. No wonder why AmorePacific and LG are climbing Happi's International Top 30 list. Korean brands have cut product development cycles to as little as four months, compared to over a year for global brands, industry experts say.
"When we received an eyeshadow order from a major global client in 2004, it took us two years to begin production. Now it takes us one year from the word go," said Lim Dae-gyu, a director at Cosmax Inc, a cosmetics manufacturer with annual sales of close to $500 million, and an office in Cleveland, OH, too.
"For South Korean mass brands, it takes less—just 4-6 months from planning to market launch is average," Lim told Reuters.
Speed-to-market with an eye on fashion helped South Korea pass the US and Japan to become the No. 2 cosmetics exporter to China after France. It shipped $1.1 billion worth of skin care creams, facial masks, compacts and other cosmetic products to the world's second-largest economy, according to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety.
South Korea's total cosmetics exports were worth $2.59 billion, up 44% from 2014, with Hong Kong and the United States its second- and third-biggest markets, a long way behind China.
Sales are boosted by South Korea's duty-free market—the world's biggest—which caters especially to big-spending Chinese tourists. Cosmetics accounted for nearly half of the country's record duty-free revenue of 5.8 trillion won ($5.1 billion) in the first half of this year, customs data showed.
To see and hear more about K Beauty and AmorePacific, view Happi's interview with Bradley Horowitz, CEO, Amorepacific US.
It's one of dozens of Korean mass cosmetics brands with a short product development cycle—a "fast beauty" approach that is increasingly popular among Chinese and other Asian millennials, gaining exposure in the United States and Europe, and attracting high-profile foreign investment. No wonder why AmorePacific and LG are climbing Happi's International Top 30 list. Korean brands have cut product development cycles to as little as four months, compared to over a year for global brands, industry experts say.
"When we received an eyeshadow order from a major global client in 2004, it took us two years to begin production. Now it takes us one year from the word go," said Lim Dae-gyu, a director at Cosmax Inc, a cosmetics manufacturer with annual sales of close to $500 million, and an office in Cleveland, OH, too.
"For South Korean mass brands, it takes less—just 4-6 months from planning to market launch is average," Lim told Reuters.
Speed-to-market with an eye on fashion helped South Korea pass the US and Japan to become the No. 2 cosmetics exporter to China after France. It shipped $1.1 billion worth of skin care creams, facial masks, compacts and other cosmetic products to the world's second-largest economy, according to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety.
South Korea's total cosmetics exports were worth $2.59 billion, up 44% from 2014, with Hong Kong and the United States its second- and third-biggest markets, a long way behind China.
Sales are boosted by South Korea's duty-free market—the world's biggest—which caters especially to big-spending Chinese tourists. Cosmetics accounted for nearly half of the country's record duty-free revenue of 5.8 trillion won ($5.1 billion) in the first half of this year, customs data showed.
To see and hear more about K Beauty and AmorePacific, view Happi's interview with Bradley Horowitz, CEO, Amorepacific US.