"We get so many customers looking for Korean cosmetics. Korean brands are especially popular for skincare products."
Those were the words of a store official at the beauty section on the ground floor of Mega Alma-Ata, a major shopping mall in Almaty, Kazakhstan, visited on Saturday. Joseon Beauty products — featuring the brand's signature moon jar motif — were among the first things to catch the eye. Items labeled in Korean, including "Power Collagen" and "Vitamin C Bright," lined the shelves side by side. Three front-facing display stands were given over entirely to Korean skincare, with Joseon Beauty joined by d'Alba, Torriden and Missha.
Local shoppers examined product ingredients closely, testing textures and scents on the backs of their hands. Maria, 18, had come specifically to buy Round Lab's birch sunscreen. "I think products from Korea, an Asian country, will suit my skin better than European ones," she said. "I've seen a lot of Korean products on SNS and was curious." She added that the sunscreen she had wanted was sold out. "I'll definitely come back and buy it next time," she said.
Korean brands were equally prominent in the makeup section. Aekyung Industrial's AGE20'S stood out, with cushion compacts, foundations and tone-up sunscreens all on display. "Korean products offer good value for the ingredients, so we get a lot of customers," a store official said. "Sixty to 70 percent of our total sales come from Korean products."
K-beauty's influence is growing across Central Asia as South Korean cosmetics companies that had focused their overseas expansion on the United States and Europe move into markets such as Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. According to Korea Customs Service trade statistics, South Korea's cosmetics exports to three Central Asian countries — Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan — totaled $15.82 million last year, continuing a growth streak that began when exports crossed the $10 million mark for the first time in 2023. Exports in the first half of this year reached $16 million, up 51.4 percent from $10.57 million in the same period last year.
Aekyung Industrial is winning over local consumers with AGE20'S and LUNA. In Kazakhstan, the company signed a direct contract with global beauty select shop Gold Apple and placed both brands in five local stores. It entered Uzbekistan in the third quarter of last year, and fourth-quarter sales rose 184.9 percent from the previous quarter.
Medicube is also expanding in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, selling through local business-to-business channels and working with local retail partners. Missha, which entered the market this year, has been actively building brand awareness since the second quarter. In Kyrgyzstan, it has secured shelf space at Asia Mall — the country's largest shopping center — as well as at local beauty specialty stores and other offline retail outlets.
"Central Asia is not yet a large market, but interest in K-beauty is high and the region has strong growth potential," an industry official said. "Moves to expand retail networks and increase consumer touchpoints will only become more active going forward."
siuu@heraldcorp.com
