September 2023

K-culture

Written by Sung Ji yeon
Photos courtesy by KCC Spain

Contemporary K-beauty

These days, it has become much easier to find sections of well-known international pharmacies that are dedicated to selling Korean cosmetic products. International influencers have uploaded a large amount of content related to Korean cosmetics and Korean-style makeup to global social media networks such as YouTube and Instagram. There are people who visit Korea specifically to experience K-beauty. They visit Myeong-dong and Gangnam, which are places with a large selection of beauty shops.
The status of K-beauty is higher than ever. Numerical data has also been used to verify the rise of K-beauty. According to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, the country recorded cosmetic exports of KRW 10 trillion (roughly USD 7.577 billion) for two consecutive years. This gave Korea the fourth-largest performance in cosmetics after the United States, France and Germany. Korea currently exports cosmetic products to 163 countries around the world, proving that there is an incredibly high global demand for K-beauty.
Meanwhile, Spain is one of the most active countries when it comes to consuming K-beauty products. According to the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA), Spain’s imports of Korean cosmetic products increased by roughly 48.8 % between 2018 and 2021. An analysis showed that young people who live in large cities actively purchase Korean cosmetic products.

‘Yeonji,’ a beauty brand that embraces Korean-style veganism, participated in the ‘2023 Korean Vegan Festival’ organized by KCC Spain. (© Yeonji)

The Spread of K-beauty Colors in Spain

The Korean Cultural Center Spain (hereinafter referred to as KCC Spain) provides opportunities for those who live in Spain to experience K-beauty in a variety of ways. The center recently held a K-beauty event with two themed sessions that took place June 20 to 21 and June 27 to 28. The overall theme of the event was “Sustainable K-beauty, Discovering Your Own Style.”
The topic for the first session, “Meot (beauty), Sustainable Beauty of Korea” introduced valuable cosmetic trends focused on vegan beauty, currently a hot topic in Korea. The vegan population more than doubled in Spain between 2019 and 2021. The event therefore reflected the increased demand for vegan culture in Spain. One participant who attended the first session said, “It was nice to be able to experience K-beauty trends that go beyond personal external beauty and place more of an emphasis on the environment.”
The topic for the second session, “Na-da-um (Being myself), Discover Your Personal Color” gave visitors the chance to experience the personal color analysis trend that is currently popular in Korea. Personal color refers to a color group that best matches an individual’s natural color. It can help one appear more lively and energetic when pairing it with styles that suit the color group.
The KCC Spain realized that personal color analysis is not something generally widespread in Spain, so the event gave people the opportunity to actively experience a popular K-beauty trend. One participant said, “Now I’ll be able to buy products that match my personal color! I think this will definitely have an effect on the beauty purchases I make in the future.”
The Center held a special lecture for local pharmacies and officials from the cosmetics industry at the end of 2022. The event reflected the rise in demand for derma-cosmetics (cosmetic products that incorporate medicine or technology) as 2many people spoke about an increase in skin problems caused by wearing a mask during COVID-19.
Derma-cosmetics is a field in which the characteristics of the K-beauty industry (fast technology and innovation) truly shine. The KCC Spain recognized that the characteristics of Korean derma-cosmetics could provide differentiation in the fiercely competitive pharmaceutical and cosmetics market. The event was an opportunity to share success stories of K-beauty and marketing strategies.
The KCC Spain plans to hold an event that will focus on Korean-style self-care centered around promoting inner beauty. The Center believes that events that promote Korean-style hair/scalp care methods will be popular among people in Spain as the region is hotter than Korea as it is located closer to the sun. The increased demand in Spain for beauty products for men has also led the center to consider events for K-homme beauty.
The KCC Spain has been able to accurately interpret K-beauty trends that occur both in Korea and around the world and has tailored events to suit many different types of consumers. The efforts taken by them are expected to allow K-beauty to prosper even further in Spain.