Company With 657 Employees Doubles Salaries: "I Want to Buy Korean" Craze Drives Average Pay to 100 Million Won
by Kwon Jaehee
Published 02 Apr.2026 07:10(KST)
Updated 02 Apr.2026 09:48(KST)
Comparison of Annual Salaries in Cosmetics Manufacturing and Sales Last Year
Amorepacific Becomes First in Industry to Surpass 100 Million Won Average Salary
APR Doubles to 92 Million Won
Widening Gap Between Brand Companies and ODMs<
In recent years, domestic cosmetics companies that have led the global K-beauty boom have seen a significant increase in the average annual salaries of their employees last year. Amorepacific surpassed an average annual salary of 100 million won per person for the first time, reaching the highest level in the industry, while APR’s average salary nearly doubled in just one year.
According to an analysis by The Asia Business Daily on April 2 of the 2025 business reports of major Korean beauty companies, APR posted the highest year-on-year increase in average employee pay. The average salary per person at APR jumped from 55 million won in 2024 to 92 million won last year, nearly doubling. An industry insider commented, “APR’s rapid growth in both scale and profit has been quickly reflected in performance-based compensation,” adding, “This case illustrates how a company’s growth stage and business model are directly projected onto wage levels.”
Amorepacific ranked first in the industry. For the first time last year, Amorepacific’s average salary per person surpassed 100 million won, coming in at 103 million won. This represents a double-digit increase (17.05%) compared to the previous year’s 88 million won.
LG Household & Health Care also saw its average salary rise from 81 million won to 87 million won over the same period, but the growth was relatively limited.
These companies, which operate as “brand companies” developing their own brands for the global market, tend to have a high proportion of high value-added work such as product planning, marketing, and overseas expansion. As a result, they employ a more aggressive performance-based compensation system. In particular, despite its relatively short history, APR recorded an average salary in the 90 million won range, reflecting the aggressive compensation policy characteristic of a growing company. In addition, compared to Amorepacific (4,748 employees) and LG Household & Health Care (4,013 employees), APR operates with a relatively small workforce of 657, which also contributes to a high-performance, talent-centric compensation structure that boosts the company’s average pay.
On the other hand, cosmetics ODM (Original Development Manufacturing - research, development, and manufacturing) companies, which are manufacturing-oriented, showed relatively lower figures. The average salary at COSMAX declined from 90.1 million won in 2024 to 83.22 million won. A COSMAX representative explained, “The temporary decrease in average pay was due to a three-digit number of new and mid-career employees joining the company in 2025.” Korea Kolmar’s average salary increased by 8.82%, from 68 million won in 2024 to 74 million won in 2025.
Differences were also observed among companies in terms of average years of service and gender wage structure. The average tenure at Amorepacific was 13 years and 7 months, while at LG Household & Health Care it was 15 years and 1 month, indicating stable organizational structures. In contrast, APR’s average length of service was just 2 years and 2 months, reflecting the characteristics of a growth company’s workforce. Among ODM firms, COSMAX recorded an average tenure of 6 years and 7 months, while Korea Kolmar’s was 6 years, both at similar levels.
Gender wage gaps persist in the industry. Although the beauty industry is known for its high proportion of female employees, men generally receive higher average pay. Among the brand companies, APR showed the largest disparity, with the average salary for male employees more than double that for female employees.
At APR, the average salary per male employee was 156 million won, whereas for female employees it was 68 million won. Of APR’s total 657 employees, 452 are women and 205 are men, meaning there are roughly twice as many women as men, yet the average male salary is more than double that of their female colleagues. At Amorepacific and LG Household & Health Care, the gender wage gap varies by business division, but the average difference ranges from 20 million to 40 million won.
Among cosmetics ODM companies, gender wage gaps were also observed. At COSMAX, the average gender pay gap was 7.03 million won, while at Korea Kolmar it was 17 million won. In these ODM firms, the numbers of male and female employees are similar or show little difference. At COSMAX, there are 816 male employees and 749 female employees; at Korea Kolmar, there are 759 male and 755 female employees.
The highest paid CEO in the beauty industry was also found to be at Amorepacific. Chairman Suh Kyungbae of Amorepacific received 5.23 billion won in compensation last year. He was followed by APR CEO Kim Byunghoon, who received 4.1 billion won, reflecting the company’s rapid business growth and global expansion in his remuneration. Next was Yoon Sanghyun, Vice Chairman of Kolmar Holdings and Korea Kolmar, who received 2.384 billion won, considered a relatively high figure. Former LG Household & Health Care CEO Lee Jungae received approximately 1.59 billion won, and COSMAX Chairman Lee Kyungsoo received 1.3 billion won last year.
Industry experts believe these results reflect the structural characteristics of the beauty sector. Brand companies exhibit strong performance-based compensation due to their growth and marketing competitiveness in the global market, while ODM companies maintain a more conservative compensation structure, focused on large-scale production and stable supply.
An industry official commented, “In the past, ODM companies built competitiveness based on stable employment and compensation systems, but recently, with the rise of indie brands and global market expansion, the compensation competitiveness of brand companies has become more prominent. As competition for talent intensifies, we may see further changes in salary structures across the industry in the future.”
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