[2020 Asia Consumer Awards] Sulwhasoo, the Culmination of 50 Years of Skin Research

[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] Sulwhasoo, honored with the Minister of Health and Welfare Award at the 14th Asia Consumer Awards, is a luxury cosmetics brand loved worldwide beyond Korea. It consists of products that combine unique Asian ingredients such as Jaumdan and ginseng with advanced scientific technology. Currently, Sulwhasoo has established a solid position as a global brand, expanding into 12 countries worldwide, including Korea, China, Singapore, the United States, and France.

Sulwhasoo's representative products are Yunjo Essence and Jaumsaeng Cream. Yunjo Essence was born in 1997 with the fundamental philosophy of "harmony and balance." It was launched as the world's first herbal boosting essence applied at the very first step after cleansing and has undergone four evolutions since then. Yunjo Essence smooths and moisturizes dry skin, the starting point of all skin concerns, with the efficacy of Jaumdan, Sulwhasoo's unique ingredient and the result of 50 years of research. It set a remarkable record as the first single product in Korea to reach cumulative sales of 1 trillion won in January 2014 and 2 trillion won in 2017.

Jaumsaeng Cream was created by combining Sulwhasoo's 50 years of ginseng research with advanced dermatological science. It uses Korean ginseng, recognized as the world's best in efficacy and quality, as the ingredient for this herbal anti-aging cream. Over 3,000 precious ingredients found in traditional ancient texts were narrowed down to five through tens of thousands of experiments, and the cream was perfected by discovering an 18-hour decoction time that maximizes the effects of the ingredients.

The heritage and technology of 50 years of ginseng research, which began with the 1966 ABC Ginseng Cream, are fully embodied in Sulwhasoo's Ginsenomics. Research was conducted comprehensively on all parts of the ginseng plant?not only the root, which is widely known as the medicinal part but also the stem, leaves, fruit, and flowers?to reveal the diverse benefits of each part for the skin.

Among ginseng saponins, effective compounds that actually provide skin benefits were discovered: Compound K (anti-aging) and Ginsenoside F1 (whitening). After extensive research to extract these two components, Sulwhasoo succeeded in developing a proprietary ginseng technology called Bio-Conversion Technology, which converts rare saponin components present in minute amounts in ginseng into effective ingredients that deeply absorb into the skin.