[KBS] The Dawn of the K-Beauty 'Super Gap'

■ Beauty Pilgrims from Around the Globe: K-Beauty Moves Beyond a Passing Fad

The arrivals hall at Incheon International Airport is bustling with foreign travelers who have arrived with empty suitcases, ready to fill them with Korean cosmetics. 

In Seongsu-dong, Seoul—now the ultimate "First Beauty Street"—international visitors often outnumber the locals.

From personalized skincare prescriptions based on professional skin analysis to the multi-step Korean skincare routine, these "beauty pilgrims" travel from all over the world to experience it firsthand. 

KBS meteorologist Park So-yeon joined them on their journey to discover the heart of K-beauty.

■ One in Four Global Beauty Products is "Made in Korea" : The Secrets to Success — Speed and Innovation

The secret behind the success of Korean cosmetics lies in a "relay race" system centered on Original Design Manufacturing (ODM).

With ODM companies equipped with specialized research labs and factories handling product development and production, this system allows emerging brands to launch high-quality products in as little as three months.

Currently, one out of four beauty products worldwide is produced through Korean companies, even global beauty brands like L’Oréal and Chanel are partnering with Korean technology.

■ A Distribution Revolution Sparked by K-Content :  World’s No. 2 in Cosmetics from South Korea

Beauty specialty stores and e-commerce platforms are infinitely expanding the horizons of K-beauty.

In 2025, foreign sales at a specific specialty store grew 26 fold compared to 2022, surpassing the 1 trillion won mark.

The K-beauty customer base on Amazon is nearing 19 million, showing a rapid growth rate. Coupled with the powerful influence of K-content, including movies, dramas, and K-pop, South Korea surpassed the United States to become the world’s second-largest cosmetics exporter in 2025.

■ Maintaining the "Super Gap": Moving Beyond China and Embracing Advanced Beauty Tech

However, the reasons for this crisis are also clear. The past strategy of major corporations to focus heavily on China has resulted in a sharp decline in export.

Also, the rapid growth of Chinese and Southeast Asian brands cannot be ignored.

To maintain its "Super Gap", South Korea is betting on beauty devices powered by AI and robotics, as well as 'hyper-personalization' technologies that manage individual skin conditions in real-time. 

They are refining content strategies based not only on English but also on Spanish.

Can Korean cosmetics evolve into global brands? We examine the necessary conditions for this transition.

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