From social media trend to economic powerhouse

Who would have thought that serums infused with snail mucin (the sticky substance they secrete) would be a part of skin care routines around the world?

According to the viral TikTok challenge promoting the serum, it happened, and sticky elasticity is key. It enabled the globalization of its manufacturer, the small South Korean brand CosRX. It is now owned by Amorepacific, the country’s largest cosmetics company.

The rapid spread of this sticky serum tells you just how successful K-beauty is. Fueled by viral content and trends, it is one of the largest industries in South Korea, where the pressure to look nearly flawless in a highly competitive society is always immense.

The domestic market alone will be worth around $13bn (£9.6bn) in 2024, with sales of some products expected to grow at double-digit rates. And the rest of the world is obsessed with K-beauty; This is perhaps not surprising, considering it is part of the Hallyu, or Korean Wave, that has made K-Pop and K-dramas a global phenomenon.

K-beauty brands now occupy entire sections of global retailers, from Sephora to Boots to Walmart. In the first half of 2025, South Korea surpassed France, the birthplace of modern cosmetics, to become the world’s second largest exporter of beauty products after the United States.

When you search “Korean skin care” on TikTok, Instagram, or YouTube, you’ll encounter a wealth of content from influencers, some with hundreds of millions of followers. They review ingredient lists, film unboxings, and record “Get Ready With Me” videos built around ideas like “glazing,” sheet masks, and, of course, snail mucin.

“There are so many products and brands that as a consumer you’re often exposed to millions of them; it’s very saturated and competitive,” said Liah Yoo, beauty influencer and founder of US-based K-beauty brand Krave Beauty.

At the heart of K-beauty’s rise is a relentless pace of innovation. New formulations emerge every few months, often designed to trigger the next online obsession.

Headline-making ingredients like ten-step skincare routines, overnight “water sleeping masks” and salmon sperm were once seen as niche or off-putting. Today, many of them are essential parts of bathroom cabinets from London to Los Angeles.

Social media has been at the center of this change. Products launched in Seoul instantly appear on TikTok and Instagram feeds in the US, UK, India and Australia.

But concerns are growing about the social impact of beauty ideals, especially on young people. Experts warn that constant exposure to online skincare content can increase anxiety and overspending.

“We are fully aware that excessive or misuse of social media can lead to backlash,” said Kim Seung-hwan, CEO of Amorepacific, adding that brands must strike a careful balance when using online platforms.

This challenge will grow as the industry expands to include Western multinationals.

L’Oréal is buying a South Korean conglomerate, including the Dr.G brand, in late 2024, saying the deal will help meet growing demand for effective yet affordable K-beauty products.

Other global companies are increasingly incorporating popular ingredients associated with Korean brands, such as centella asiatica and rice water, into their own production lines.

Many of South Korea’s big beauty brands are part of the country’s powerful conglomerates, or chaebols.

Amorepacific accounts for nearly half of the domestic market. Its portfolio ranges from premium brands like Sulwhasoo to global mass-market names like Laneige, environmentally focused labels like Innisfree and fast-growing independent brands. But even as a chaebol, Amorepacific says it looks to smaller independent brands for new ideas.

“Through the founder and the CosRX team, we were able to learn about their approach to formula innovation and how we can respond faster to consumer needs,” said Mr. Kim of Amorepacific. “These lessons have since been integrated into our broader organization.”

Amorepacific sold approximately $6.2 billion worth of products in 2024. Another large holding, LG Home and Health Services, recorded sales of $4.1 billion. The size of the sector continues to show itself in South Korea’s export figures.

Exports rose 15% to a record $5.5 billion in the first half of 2025, driven largely by strong sales in the US and Europe, putting the country on track to surpass $10 billion in annual beauty exports.

For Mr. Kim, not all customers are the same.

“In countries like Japan, Korea and China, there is more interest in things like flawless skin. In Europe, the main category is fragrance, while in the US, make-up is more popular,” he said.

“Some things are changing, though,” he added, noting a growing interest in youthful-looking skin and sun protection among Western consumers, especially as awareness of climate change and UV exposure increases.

South Korea’s 30,000 or so beauty brands rely on a highly developed industrial ecosystem to meet ever-growing demand.

They are supported by original development manufacturers, or ODMs, who perform research, formulation and production for thousands of labels.

Even large conglomerates outsource some product lines, while smaller companies rely heavily on ODMs to move quickly and keep costs low.

Cosmax, one of the largest manufacturers, supplies approximately 4,500 brands from factories in South Korea, China, the USA and South East Asia.

It accounted for just over a quarter of South Korea’s $10 billion cosmetics exports in 2024.

This allows products to go from concept to sale in as little as six months; This process can take one to three years for many Western brands.

Automation helps keep costs low. The BBC visited a vast Amorepacific factory outside the South Korean capital Seoul; here, a handful of workers supervised fully automated production lines bottling Laneige’s Water Sleeping Mask and CosRX’s Vitamin C 23 Serum.

But speed comes at a price. Intense competition contributed to low profit margins and high rates of business failure. More than 8,800 cosmetic brands have gone bankrupt in recent years, according to government data.

“South Korea has a great infrastructure that can help you build a brand quickly, but growing a successful brand is another story,” Ms. Yoo said. “It depends on your brand sense, your identity, and how different your products are from others on the market.”

As competition intensifies, brands face increasing pressure to be more transparent and focus on their ingredients and the effectiveness of their products rather than celebrity endorsements.

“We’re not just buying from big brands anymore. We’re actually talking about the ingredients, where it comes from and what it does,” said Mia Chen, a leading beauty influencer. “Most Korean skin care is derived from natural ingredients, and we all want this on our skin without side effects.”

The sector is also shaped according to its changing market.

China is no longer the biggest overseas buyer as its own brands erode the dominance once held by Japanese and Korean imports.

Amorepacific’s North American business outpaced its business in China last year for the first time in 80 years, Mr. Kim said, adding that the firm also expects growth in Japan, Europe, India and the Middle East.

The US remains a major market, importing more beauty products from South Korea than anywhere else. However, President Donald Trump’s 15% tariffs on Korean imports have caused some uncertainty.

Olive Young, South Korea’s largest cosmetics retailer, which plans to open its first store in the USA this year, has imposed a 15 percent customs duty on orders coming from America. Amorepacific said it would consider price increases only on a case-by-case basis, based on discussions with retail partners such as Sephora and Walmart.

But the companies have the backing of the South Korean government, which designated K-beauty as a strategic national asset in December and pledged to support production and exports.

It’s a meaningful vote of confidence in an industry that started as a viral trend and has now become an economic force.

Additional reporting by Jaltson Akkanath Chummar and Juna Moon