North American Distribution and Marketing Expert 'Lee Gong-i-gong' Supports Cosmax's K-Beauty Entry into the US Market

Global brand accelerator 202020 announced on the 19th that it is starting a project to support the entry of K-beauty startups into the North American market in partnership with domestic cosmetics manufacturer COSMAX.

202020 recently selected five K-beauty startups with high potential to grow into global brands centered on the U.S. market through the ‘K-Beauty’s Next Big 5 in USA’ contest held with COSMAX. This contest was open to cosmetic companies with makeup, hair, and body products whose export amount was less than $1 million last year, and about 100 emerging brands applied over the past two months.

Provided by Smilegate Investment

The final selected companies are ▲ IconBX (DearDoor) ▲ Ato & Moros (Thorhop) ▲ SB Cosmetics (SelfBeauty) ▲ WadizX (Motomont) ▲ VueNouveau (Synsthrough), totaling five companies. They are expected to receive up to 500 million KRW in credit from COSMAX and investment review from Smilegate Investment over the next two years. In addition, they will receive marketing support necessary for entry into North American Amazon and offline channels through 202020, and also gain the opportunity to participate in the world’s largest beauty exhibition, ‘2025 Cosmoprof Las Vegas.’

Since 2018, 202020 has supported more than 170 K-brands to successfully settle in the North American online and offline commerce markets, starting with Amazon marketing services for domestic companies. Notably, K-beauty brands supported by 202020 such as Gahi, Belmude, Laneige, and Mixsoon have ranked high in Amazon sales rankings, proving deep understanding of the North American market and branding expertise.

Hyung Joo-hyuk, CEO of 202020, said, “Through numerous visitors and high interest at global beauty exhibitions visiting our booth, we realized that K-beauty is not just a market limited to Asian consumers but a powerful category that can target the entire United States.” He added, “We want to nurture the next unicorns of K-beauty by combining COSMAX’s superior infrastructure, which has provided cosmetic raw material research and contract manufacturing solutions to small and medium enterprises, with 202020’s unique brand accelerating know-how.”

Lee Sang-geun, senior team leader at Smilegate Investment, who invested in 202020 three times since 2023, said, “As the domestic startup ecosystem rapidly changes to global products and services, the number of clients seeking 202020 is sharply increasing. Not only did 202020 achieve outstanding results by attracting over 20 billion KRW in investment and rapid sales growth last year, but it also established a virtuous business model where the growth of one startup drives the growth of another, making its future prospects even more promising.”

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