Beyond Skincare, Color Cosmetics Next... K-beauty Expands Its Global Reach

[Financial News] K-beauty is seeking to expand its business beyond skincare into makeup. Although entering overseas markets is more challenging for color cosmetics than for skincare, an increasing number of brands are targeting global markets, building on the success of companies such as TIRTIR.
According to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety on the 4th, South Korea's color cosmetics exports totaled $1.51 billion last year, up 12% from the previous year. They rose 1.5-fold in two years after surpassing $1 billion in 2023.
Although color cosmetics exports are growing, skincare still accounts for most cosmetics exports. Skincare exports totaled $8.543 billion last year, representing 75% of total cosmetics exports. In the first half of this year, skincare accounted for 78% of exports, already exceeding last year's share as cosmetics exports reached a record high.
By contrast, color cosmetics' share fell from 13.2% last year to 10.3% in the first half of this year. The proportion of color cosmetics declined relatively as exports grew rapidly, led by skincare.
K-beauty's growth has centered on skincare because color cosmetics are relatively difficult to take overseas. Skin tones vary widely by country and ethnicity, while preferences for colors and formulations, as well as makeup techniques, also differ.
Recently, however, as K-beauty's global recognition has grown, success stories have begun to emerge in color cosmetics as well. One prominent example is TIRTIR, a makeup brand under Goodai Global. After finding success in Japan with its cushion products, TIRTIR expanded into markets including the United States.
Of TIRTIR's 305.3 billion won in sales last year, 124.5 billion won, or 40%, came from Japan. Sales in the Americas totaled 89.5 billion won, accounting for 29%. The Americas' share of sales surged from 1.3% in 2023, when sales totaled 2.1 billion won, in just two years. TIRTIR generates 94% of its sales overseas.
TIRTIR's performance is seen as the result of bold localization. To target global markets, including the United States beyond Japan, the company increased the number of cushion shades from three to 40 in 2024.
Other brands are also accelerating their overseas expansion. Laneige, one of the first-generation K-beauty brands to enter overseas markets, has gained popularity with its lip products and achieved record sales at Amazon Prime Day in the United States last June. Benow, which operates the skincare brand Numbuzin, posted sales of 325 billion won last year, driven by the growth of its color cosmetics brand fwee.
I Family SC, the operator of the color cosmetics brand Rom&nd, also posted 216.3 billion won in sales last year as it increased exports. Aekyung Industrial's TRUTH OF BEAUTY recently selected Rei of IVE as its global ambassador and plans to strengthen its push into overseas markets.
An industry official said, "As preference for K-beauty grows in global markets, opportunities are emerging not only for skincare but also for color cosmetics. The clear targeting of specific consumer groups by each domestic brand is likely to serve as a key success factor."
[email protected] Kang Myeong-yeon Reporter