○ The K-Beauty Expo Shanghai 2019 was successfully held from May 6 to 9.
○ 1,025 meetings generate contracts valued at KRW 9.6 billion; on-the-spot orders for exports valued at KRW 3 billion
○ Large-scale export conference with 400 representatives from 200 Taobao “power sellers” (first event of its kind)
○ Approximately 90% of the participating companies were satisfied with the event; there were over half a million visitors, an advance briefing session, and promotional activities led by the Chinese influencer Wang Hong

Korea’s leading companies from the beauty industry have successfully opened new sales channels via Shanghai, an economic center of China, with an expected combined export volume of KRW 9.6 billion.

On May 14, Gyeonggi Province announced that it hosted export meetings at the 2019 K-Beauty Expo Shanghai at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (NECC) in Shanghai from May 6 to 9. These meetings led to the generation of contracts valued at KRW 9.6 billion and on-the-spot orders placed with domestic companies for exports valued at KRW 3 billion.

This event – held under the theme “All About K-Beauty” – saw the hosting of 86 booths by 63 domestic companies, including 52 booths by 32 Gyeonggi-based companies in the beauty industry. The companies presented their products in all K-beauty categories (including cosmetics, skin treatment, and skin care, as well as hair, body, and nail care) in mainland China to approximately half a million visitors.

Of particular note, because the fair was held in conjunction with the China International Beauty Expo (Shanghai), the largest beauty industry fair in China which attracted approximately 2,200 Chinese and international companies, the event was able to benefit from synergistic effects.

In collaboration with the KOTRA Shanghai Trade Center, Gyeonggi Province provided participating companies with lists of potential buyers before departure, and also held a briefing session on the latest trends in global cosmetics markets including the Chinese market before the opening of the fair.

Because the Chinese government reduced tariffs in July last year and streamlined the process for examining and registering imported goods for the international direct purchase of cosmetics, Gyeonggi Province held an export conference with the invitation of approximately 400 representatives of 200 power sellers on Taobao, the largest e-commerce platform in China, to help participating Korean companies enter the Chinese online market.

Additionally, Gyeonggi Province invited Wang Hong, a Chinese influencer with about 150 million subscribers on Chinese live streaming sites, such as Yizhibo, Huajiao, and more, to visit each booth and introduce the participating companies’ products to viewers throughout China in real time.

“We have postponed our return due to the number of meetings we set up with buyers we were able to meet during the fair and during the export conference with Taobao power sellers. Based on the outcomes of this fair, we think it is in our best interest to continue making an effort to enter the markets in Hong Kong and Taiwan, as well as in mainland China,” said a representative of Suae, a Goyang-based company that manufactures LED under-eye patches, expressing satisfaction.

A representative of Bucheon-based C&N Cosmetic said: “More than 90% of the visitors to our booth were large-scale buyers. I think we will be able to successfully enter the Chinese market based on continuing exchanges with the buyers we met in the meeting with Taobao sellers.”

“We had a lot more visitors than we expected, and we were also satisfied with the booth’s design,” said a representative of E-rin, a Suwon-based company. He continued: “During the course of the fair, our booth attracted over 200 WeChat (a prominent local SNS app) users. We believe that we will be able to achieve even better results in the future.”.

A Gyeonggi official stated: “According to a survey conducted by the province, 90% of participants were satisfied with the event and hoped to participate in it again. We will continue to support promising SMEs in the beauty industry with their entry into international markets.”

The next K-Beauty Expo will run from July 11 to 13 at the Bangkok International Trade & Exhibition Centre in Thailand.