CJ Olive Young to Host Product Evaluation Meeting for Discovering Emerging Small Brands

A representative from a small and medium-sized enterprise attending the Joyful Partnership Product Evaluation held on the 26th is seen consulting with an Olive Young MD about store entry.

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeon Jinyoung] Olive Young is stepping up efforts to discover emerging small and medium-sized brands in line with the revitalization of the beauty market driven by expectations of the COVID-19 endemic.

CJ Olive Young announced on the 26th that it will hold the ‘Joyful Companion’ store entry evaluation event in collaboration with the Small and Medium Business Distribution Center over two days from the 26th to the 27th. This evaluation event is being held offline for the first time in over three years to provide practical support such as sales channel assistance to small and medium-sized enterprises that have experienced ups and downs due to COVID-19.

The evaluation event is open to 28 promising small and medium-sized enterprises that passed document screening. With face-to-face consultations now possible, the number of supported companies this year increased by about 20% compared to the previous year. Participating brands are diverse, covering both beauty and health categories. In beauty, there were many entries of pads and vegan cosmetics, while in health, calorie-conscious healthy snacks were popular. Most of these items have emerged as popular product groups since the pandemic.

‘Joyful Companion’ is a leading industry win-win program that Olive Young has been running since 2016 to promote mutual growth with small and medium-sized enterprises. It discovers emerging brands with excellent quality, provides opportunities to enter Olive Young stores and online malls, and supports marketing as well. To date, more than 120 brands and 1,000 products have been discovered through ‘Joyful Companion.’

For companies participating in the evaluation event, Olive Young merchandisers (MDs) act as 1:1 mentors to help expand sales channels. The final selected products will be available in major Olive Young stores or online malls starting in July, depending on product attributes. In the second half of the year, a special exhibition focusing exclusively on Joyful Companion products will be held to further increase customer touchpoints.

A representative of a small company participating in the evaluation event said, “We went through a difficult period due to COVID-19 for two years, so we are glad to be able to seek sales channels again,” adding, “It was very helpful to hear detailed feedback on the product’s strengths and areas for improvement at the Joyful Companion evaluation event.”

An Olive Young official said, “This evaluation event is expected to be a great opportunity for small and medium-sized enterprises with excellent quality but difficulties in distribution due to COVID-19 to find sales channels,” and added, “We will take the lead in achieving true mutual growth by advancing into the global K-beauty market together with promising small and medium-sized enterprises.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.