Amorepacific Bets on 'Swimming-Pool Chlorine'...Invests in MAKEMAKE [fn Market Watch]

[Financial News] Amorepacific has bet on a beauty startup that addresses hair and skin discomfort caused by chlorine left behind after swimming. As competition intensifies in the traditional cosmetics market, the strategic investment in functional beauty technology targeting problems arising from “water” as part of daily life is drawing attention.
According to investment banking and venture capital industry sources on the 23rd, MAKEMAKE, which operates SOOO, a global beauty brand offering solutions for water-related stress, has raised KRW 3 billion in pre-Series A funding. Amorepacific, Signite and IgniteXL Ventures joined the round as new investors. Existing investor Bluepoint Partners also participated in the follow-on investment.
MAKEMAKE is targeting what is known as the “swim care” market. Its products focus on reducing the discomfort caused when residual chlorine in swimming-pool water remains on the hair and skin. Unlike the general hair and skin care products that major beauty companies have focused on, the company addresses a problem arising from the specific everyday environment of swimming.
Market validation is also underway. SOOO won the grand prize in the hair care category at Cosmoprof Asia 2025 and received another grand prize at Shanghai K-Beauty Glow Week. It has since broadened its product lineup by launching Scalpture, a scalp-care line.
Investment banking industry sources are paying close attention to Amorepacific's participation in the round. The investment is viewed as more strategic than purely financial, reflecting the potential to expand the materials and product technologies developed for swim care into the broader scalp and hair care market. Analysts also say the investment could help secure technology beyond traditional cosmetics, particularly as MAKEMAKE plans to expand into beauty-tech devices in the future.
MAKEMAKE plans to use the funds to advance its core materials and product technologies while stepping up its entry into the North American market. Starting with swim care, the company intends to expand into scalp and hair care and beauty-tech devices, developing into a platform that addresses “beauty problems caused by water” more broadly.
Kwak Hyo-seop, CEO of MAKEMAKE, said, "The significance lies not so much in the fundraising itself as in securing a strategic partner to build SOOO's global growth together."
[email protected] Kang Gu-gwi Reporter