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Seoul Opens K-Beauty Pop-Up Store in Dubai to Support SMEs to Expand into Middle Eastern Markets

2024-05-22 2 min read

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Seoul Opens K-Beauty Pop-Up Store in Dubai to Support SMEs to Expand into Middle Eastern Markets

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The Seoul Metropolitan Government is launching a global market development support project to help small and medium-sized beauty companies based in Seoul overcome challenges in expanding into overseas markets and achieve global growth. As part of this initiative, the city will focus its marketing efforts on the UAE. According to data from the Korea Health Industry Development Institute, the export performance of Korean cosmetics to the UAE increased from $17 million in 2019 to $89 million in 2023, representing about a fivefold increase over five years.

Applications from interested companies will be accepted until June 12. Following this, experts in the beauty industry, distribution/export, and halal and Middle Eastern markets will evaluate the applicants. The final selection of 30 companies will be announced in June. These selected companies will receive support for opening a ‘K-Beauty Pop-Up Store’ in Dubai, UAE, and for entering both online and offline distribution channels.

There are four categories for recruitment: General Cosmetics, Halal/Vegan Cosmetics, Inner Beauty, and Beauty Tech. The selected companies will receive concentrated support, including business matching to enter UAE sales channels, operating K-Beauty Pop-Up Stores, and export consulting related to entering the Middle Eastern market.

Firstly, opportunities will be provided to enter distribution networks through business matching, such as online consultations with prominent beauty buyers. Through preliminary online consultations, buyer preferences will be identified, followed by close support for sample shipment and product authorization processes, ensuring that competitive products can successfully enter the market with a one-stop support system.

Secondly, the ‘K-Beauty Pop-Up Store’, where products can be displayed and sold, is planned to operate for 3-5 days in a Dubai shopping mall event space in the second half of this year (scheduled for September 2024). Support will also include social media promotion and marketing using well-known local influencers.

Furthermore, continuous support will be provided in the form of export consulting for entering the Middle Eastern market, education related to authorization, and tailored product consultations for the Middle Eastern cultural sphere (halal/vegan). The consulting will analyze the characteristics of the Middle Eastern cosmetics market and purchase data by gender and age, providing tailored marketing strategies based on this analysis.

Notably, the Seoul Metropolitan Government plans to give additional points to excellent companies with various certifications, early-stage startups, and companies realizing social values (such as eco-friendly practices and cruelty-free testing) during the selection process to ensure that companies representing K-Beauty can successfully establish themselves in overseas markets. 

Kwon So-hyun, director of Beauty Fashion Industry Division in Seoul Metropolitan Government, stated, “We will identify small and medium-sized beauty brands with strong export potential and provide long-term overseas marketing support to ensure their establishment and growth in foreign markets through precise market analysis considering Middle Eastern cultures such as halal and vegan. We will continue to foster promising small and medium-sized enterprises to help them grow into globally recognized K-Beauty representative brands.”

[Korean Startup Going global News]


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