The beginning of ‘Sulwhasoo,’ the essence of Amorepacific’s beauty ginseng science, dates back to 1954 at the cosmetics laboratory. In 1966, Sulwhasoo launched their first ginseng cosmetic, ‘ABC Ginseng Cream,’ through research on grafting ginseng into cosmetics. Ginseng is a precious plant representing Korea. After that, Amorepacific created ‘Sulwhasoo,’ a representative of oriental medicine cosmetics, through steady research.
Since its launch in 1997, Sulwhasoo has firmly defended the market as a high-end product representing K-beauty. Korean herbal cosmetics, including Sulwhasoo, contributed to raising the quality of K-beauty abroad. Particularly, last year, when the cosmetics market froze, it recorded high sales in China and other Asian countries. It is still showing its potential. It is no exaggeration to say that the recently released ‘New Concentrated Ginseng Renewing Cream’ will lead Amorepacific’s earnings in the second half of the year.
Amorepacific 2nd Quarter led by a luxury brand
It was definitely Sulwhasoo that supported Amorepacific in the second quarter. On July 23, Amorepacific announced that it recorded sales of KRW 1.303.4 trillion. Also, their operating profit amounts to KRW 104.6 billion in the second quarter. Sales increased by 10.4% compared to the same period last year. Operating profit grew by a whopping 188.5%.
Particularly, Sulwhasoo’s performances abroad were dazzling. Amorepacific’s sales increased in most regions such as North America and Europe, centering on Asia in the second quarter. Among them, the ‘Sulwhasoo Concentrated Ginseng Renewing Cream’ was intensively fostered in China. So, it results in a 60% increase in overall brand sales.
The ‘Concentrated Ginseng Renewing Cream’ is a high-end product category among Sulwhasoo brands. ‘Concentrated Ginseng Renewing Essence,’ launched in 2018, is a highly functional anti-aging skincare product. It is gaining popularity in the Chinese market. These luxury brands have driven the growth of the Chinese market. In the second quarter, online sales of luxury brands in China grew by about 100%. The power of Sulwhasoo was strong even in the ASEAN region. Amorepacific announced that Sulwhasoo’s sales increased by more than 60% due to growing interest in luxury anti-aging in the ASEAN region.
Thanks to growth in the second quarter, Amorepacific entered into a strategy of ‘hardening’ with ‘New Concentrated Ginseng Renewing Cream.’
Loved by many consumers since its launch in 2020, Concentrated Ginseng Renewing Cream is Sulwhasoo’s ‘steady seller.’
It ranked No. 1 in luxury anti-aging cream for 6 years in a row. The triple elasticity of ‘filling, erecting, and pulling’ provides firm skin that you can feel even at your fingertips. Amorepacific explained, “The 2021 ‘New Concentrated Ginseng Renewing Cream,’ upgraded to a stronger anti-aging cream, is a ginsenomic ingredient. It concentrates the vitality of ginseng, providing firmer skin today than yesterday.”
The new Concentrated Ginseng Renewing Cream, released this time, features ‘Soft’ and ‘Classic’ according to your preferred scent and feeling of use. So, it broadens the choice of customers. ‘Soft’ has a light and refreshing formulation. It contains the fragrance of ginseng flowers. ‘Classic’ is a rich and nutritious formula characterized by a subtle ginseng scent.
It was Amorepacific’s ‘Sulwhasoo Oriental Medicine Science Research Center’ that created ginsenomics. The research center succeeded in creating ginsenomics, a crystal of anti-aging. They are extracting rare saponins, which we can only obtain from 1000 g of ginseng. With Sulwhasoo’s unique technology, they concentrate the ginseng 6,000 times with proprietary biotechnology. An Amorepacific official explained, “Ginsenomics relieves aging and revitalizes the skin. It gives the skin the power to become stronger by actively responding to various changes.”
The product made with ginsenomics is ‘New Concentrated Ginseng Renewing Cream.’
Concentrated Ginseng Renewing Cream fills with ginsenomics, which concentrates the vitality of ginseng. It completes firm skin that does not crumble through triple elasticity that pulls and builds. In fact, as a result of the self-evaluation of 31 women aged 30 to 60, 83% of customers answered that they experienced firm skin even after 24 hours.
‘The essence of beauty ginseng’ achieved through 50 years of research
Oriental cosmetics have contributed to creating a luxurious image of Korean cosmetics in China and other Asian countries. Particularly, they are showing unstoppable sales even when duty-free shop sales are frozen in the aftermath of COVID-19).
The cosmetics market is currently undergoing polarization. Due to the COVID-19 crisis, demand for basic cosmetics is more concentrated than color tones. In the mid-to-low-priced cosmetics market led by road shops, the fate of the cosmetics market began to change. It will depend on whether it entered the H&B store or not. The growth of beauty brands of influencers who have grown through social media is also not easy.
In this situation, ‘K-beauty’ companies such as Amorepacific firmly defend the high-end cosmetics market. They exude their technological prowess that other brands cannot match. This is because there are products that only K-beauty companies can create. Although the actors entering the cosmetics market have diversified.
Amorepacific’s ‘Sulwhasoo,’ which has grown in this way, along with LG Household & Health Care, has raised its brand image by forming a rivalry for oriental medicine cosmetics. The Sulwhasoo Oriental Medicine Science Research Center, composed of top experts from the Amorepacific R&D Center, serves as a base for making high-quality products. The Sulwhasoo Oriental Medicine Science Research Center has been researching herbal ingredients for over 50 years. An Amorepacific official explained, “The Concentrated Ginseng Renewing Cream is a product that contains the dedication and hard work of researchers at the Sulwhasoo Oriental Medicine Research Center, which has integrated the technology of ginseng science.”
The Sulwhasoo Oriental Medicine Science Research Center conducts anti-aging research that studies the combinations and efficacy of 3912 different oriental medicinal ingredients and scientifically verifies the efficacy of the ingredients. By using the latest analytical tools to establish a modern theory of oriental medicine, Sulwhasoo’s core ingredient, ginseng, is also concentrated in various ways to develop exclusive key ingredients.
In August 2020, the Sulwhasoo Oriental Medicine Research Center held a global symposium on ginsenomics and successfully announced the progress of ginseng research, attracting the attention of experts. At the event where ginseng research experts from Korea and China participated and announced the value and efficacy of ginseng, Sulwhasoo’s unique anti-aging solution, active beauty saponin, ginsenomics, an active beauty saponin, announced the value and functionality.
Sulwhasoo will surely lead Amorepacific’s growth in the future as interest in high-end basic cosmetics is growing due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Hana Financial Investment predicted that Sulwhasoo would grow 30-40% in the third quarter in Korea and China compared to the same period last year. Jongdae Park, an analyst at Hana Financial Investment, said, “Although the domestic duty-free shop base is low, Sulwhasoo’s sales in China grew 20% last year compared to the previous year.”
Particularly, the launch of the renewed Concentrated Ginseng Renewing Cream is a factor that further raises expectations for the second half of the year.
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