Success in Seoul

Suppliers, brands and distributors gathered at the first-ever MakeUp in Seoul, on March 13th and 14th at Korea’s Conrad Seoul Hotel—and the exhibition attracted more than 1,800 visitors, which is a higher number than any other first edition of “MakeUp In” has reached in other locations.

“Everyone was fully involved to make this very first edition a true success,” said Sandra Maguarian and Jean-Yves Bourgeois, the show’s organizers—who together thanked the 34 exhibitors for their enthusiasm and support.

Students at a makeup artist school in Korea, The Hera Academy, which is organized in collaboration with the cosmetic brand by Amore Pacific, Hera, demonstrated products for visitors at the show.

Organizers say the show’s success is due to the fact that Korean suppliers and manufacturers have managed to reach a high level of expertise in both formulation and packaging—in just a few years’ time.

“The evidence is clear,” organizers stated, along with the assurance that makeup innovation in Korea has become a reality, and is here to stay.

Looking at the Stats
The event attracted the attention of Korean makeup brands, as well as visitors from other countries.

• Twenty-five percent of visitors came from abroad.

• A high percentage of attendees were from Japan and China, but other countries represented include: Hong Kong, Thailand, Taiwan, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Australia—and the United States.

In addition to the exhibiting suppliers and cosmetic manufacturers, top brand owners were on the visitor registration list, from companies that included Amore Pacific, Estee Lauder, Guerlain, H&M, L’Occitane, Make Up Forever, Mary Kay, Parfums Christian Dior, Shu Uemura and Yves Rocher, among others.

There were also conference sessions, including “Makeup Trends in Europe Versus Asia,” and “Autumn/Winter 2014—Key Runway Makeup Trends: Adapting the season’s main runway trends into product implications for Asian consumers.”

Positive Feedback

Exhibitors offered a few compliments. Representatives from Fiabila said that the exhibition attracted high-quality visitors who were “main players in the cosmetic industry.”

Cosmecca said that for them, the show was more successful than expected. “Globally, the Korea market is booming in the beauty industry with Hanryu; thus, a lot of global companies pay attention to Korea...” a representative explained, referring to “Hanryu,” a term coined by journalists in Beijing. It refers to the increase in the popularity of South Korean culture—and its export. Literally, the word means “flow of Korea.”

Baralan said organizers were warmly welcoming—and the supplier was happy to have participated. “The purpose of our presence was mainly to have a better and mostly, a direct knowledge of the Korean cosmetics landscape and to win and meet potential clients interested in our products. The result was satisfactory with eventually, 28 visitors during the two days of the fair, which we hope will soon turn into orders,” the supplier stated.

Plans to Continue

The positive response from both exhibitors and visitors paved the way for “MakeUp In” to continue hosting a show in Korea next year.

“The Korean industry is undoubtedly pulling the global makeup industry upwards—and the German, Italian, French exhibiting companies, among others, who chose to take part this year, were able to take full advantage of this driving force,” said Maguarian, adding, “See you next year!”