Cosmetics maker Aekyung opens online flagship store in China's Tmall

SEOUL -- South Korea's hygiene and cosmetics product maker Aekyung has opened an online flagship store in Tmall, a shopping mall operated by China's Alibaba Group, to target both business-to-customer and business-to-business markets. The demand for K-beauty products has been high in China.

South Korean cosmetics products, also known as K-beauty products, are gaining the favor of young female consumers in the global market thanks to the increasing popularity of K-pop and K-drama. The global K-beauty market, which stood at $10.3 billion in 2019, is projected to reach $31.6 billion by 2029, according to Prophecy Market Insights, a global market research firm.

Aekyung said in a statement on November 10 that the company opened "AEKYUNG Kerasys," an online flagship store, in Tmall's international and domestic shopping malls to sell functional hair care products including shampoos and treatments. Suzy, a popular South Korean singer-actress, was selected as the main endorsement model of Aekyung's hair care products.

"We hope to expand our points of contact with Chinese customers through our online flagship store," an Aekyung official was quoted as saying. The cosmetics company will release clinical strength care products and hair dye products in the future.

Tmall is the brother company of Chinese online shopping mall Taobao also run by Alibaba, the Chinese counterpart of Amazon. The Tmall flagship store is part of Aekyung's plan to attract young consumers through online ecommerce platforms in China, which is a key K-beauty market estimated at more than $3 billion in 2019.

The company opened a brand store in Amazon in June this year targeting young American consumers. Through Amazon's brand store, Aekyung introduced its cosmetics brand "AGE 20's" including products such as an essence cover powder and pact, primer, tone-up booster and other makeup products that have acquired approval from the U.S. Food and Drugs Administration.

While anti-aging and whitening products are popular in China and Southeast Asia, color makeup products such as eye shadows and lipsticks as well as BB (Beauty Balm) products that serve as an all-in-one solution of foundation, moisturizer and sunscreen are popular in the U.S. and Europe, Aekyung said.