Rom&, a domestic color cosmetics brand, became a huge hit in Japan by spreading word of mouth as a ‘best lip tint restaurant’. In particular, Rom&’s ‘Juicy Lasting Tint’ is receiving favorable reviews from Japanese cosmetics enthusiasts for its variety of colors, vivid coloring, and pretty container. Every year, it ranks at the top of sales on Japanese beauty platforms ‘LIPS ’ and ‘Etcosme’. Tint refers to cosmetics that are applied to the lips and cause coloring for a certain period of time.

Thanks to this, sales of iFamily S.C., which develops the Rom& brand, are also skyrocketing. Rom&’s sales last year were 85.3 billion won, of which exports accounted for more than 60%. Rom&’s Japanese sales in the second quarter of this year also increased by 73% compared to the same period last year.

This does not only apply to nearby Japan and China. The popularity of domestically produced cosmetics is soaring worldwide, even in North America and Europe. This is because the status and awareness of K-beauty have risen further compared to the past due to the relatively low price and excellent product quality, the popularity of the Korean Wave, including K-pop, and the strengthening of online marketing using YouTube and SNS .

On the 4th, the Korea Customs Service announced that exports of lip cosmetics, including lipstick, through July of this year reached $198 million, a 63.5% increase over the same period last year, recording the highest ever. The export weight is 3,415 tons, which is about 122 million pieces assuming 28g each. This corresponds to 86% of the total export volume last year. By product type, there are 23 million units (649 tons) of lipsticks and 99 million units (2,766 tons) of tints, lip balms, and lip glosses.

As for exports by country, based on this year’s export amount, the United States accounted for the highest share at 42.2%. This was followed by Japan (15.1%), China (9.5%), Vietnam 스포츠토토(7.8%), and France (3.9%). Excluding China, four of the top five exporting countries recorded their highest export volume from January to July during the same period. As of July, exports to the United States, Japan, and France have already surpassed last year’s annual performance.

There are also countries that have pioneered new markets, such as Luxembourg. Since 2018, when the Korean Wave spread from a few fans to society as a whole, domestic cosmetics exporters have been selling to more than 100 countries around the world every year. The record for the largest export country was set last year by exporting to 122 countries, the highest ever, and this year, exports to 125 countries by July broke the record.

Amore Pacific, Korea’s largest cosmetics company, also announced that lip balm has been growing significantly since the second half of last year. From July of last year to June of this year, Amorepacific Group’s major lip balm products increased sales by 195% compared to the previous year in North America. In particular, in the case of the brand ‘Hera’, whose model is Jenny, a member of global K-pop star Blackpink, sales of its representative lip balm product ‘Hera Sensual Spicy Nude Balm’ increased by 191% during the same period.

Another place that stands out are mid-sized and small-sized cosmetics companies such as Rom&. Brands from small and medium-sized domestic cosmetics companies, such as Clio, Laka, Tyrtir, and Joseon Beauty, are also gaining popularity overseas. In fact, it is reported that Clio is expanding its presence in the United States, Japan, and Southeast Asia by hiring Ahn Yu-jin of the popular girl group Ive as its model.

As K-beauty is doing well, cosmetics manufacturers are also enjoying special benefits. Kolmar Korea and Cosmax, Korea’s leading cosmetics OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) and ODM (Original Development Manufacturing) companies, achieved mutual growth in both sales and operating profit in the second quarter of this year, with both companies achieving the highest quarterly performance. In particular, Cosmax’s lipstick product line sales increased 67% from January to July of this year compared to the same period last year.

Regarding the growing popularity of K-beauty around the world, an official in the cosmetics industry said, “The Korean Wave has the biggest influence,” adding, “As K-pop, K-drama, and K-movies become popular, interest in stars’ makeup methods increases, and naturally, Korea “Awareness of cosmetics has increased,” he said. He added, “In addition, Korean cosmetics are cost-effective, launch new products relatively quickly compared to overseas brands, and marketing using YouTube and SNS are considered factors in their popularity.”