[Courtesy of CJ Olive Young]
According to data released by market research firm Prescient & Strategic Intelligence, the color cosmetics market in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) which stood at $370.6 million in 2020 will grow with an average annual growth rate of 5.3 percent between 2020 and 2030. Wakemake featuring vivid colors was selected as CJ Olive Young's first brand to be exported to the Middle East to meet high demands for color cosmetics. The company said the UAE would be used as the bridgehead for markets in other Middle Eastern countries, which has a high population of young people under the age of 30.
CJ Olive Young said that Wakemake entered popular online shopping malls in the UAE such as "Amazon" and "noon" in August 2022. Since January 2023, the South Korean company has been selling the brand through local offline stores such as "Faces." An eyeliner product called "Any-Proof Pen Eyeliner" is currently the most popular item in the Middle East country. The product earned a rating of 4.5 out of 5 on Amazon.
"Because consumer preferences over K-beauty products with price and quality competitiveness is increasing recently, we will closely monitor the Middle Eastern market by exporting our own brand lineup," an unnamed CJ Olive Young official said in a statement on February 12.
Despite a global lockdown caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, exports of South Korean cosmetics products hit a record of $9.2 billion in 2021 up 21.5 percent from a year ago. In 2020, the United States imported about $536 million worth of K-beauty products. Vietnam's K-beauty market stood at $273 million in 2020 up 17.6 percent on-year. In 2021, CJ Olive Young opened a brand store in Lazada, a major e-commerce platform in Southeast Asia, to sell K-beauty products. In 2019, the beauty store operator launched an online shopping mall where foreign consumers can directly purchase South Korean products.
reporter
Kim Joo-heon
jhkim123@ajunews.com
