[Record High Japan Exports] MZ Generation Captivated by Korean Dramas, K-Beauty Craze

Nature Republic 'Vitamin C Serum'
Ranked No.1 in Overall Sales on Japan's Rakuten
'4th Korean Wave' Trend Since Last Year
Main Consumers: MZ Generation with Weak Anti-Korean Sentiment

The untact live broadcast scene conducted last February by Nature Republic with exclusive model NCT127

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Hye-seon] The cosmetics brand Nature Republic's ‘Vitafair C Blemish Serum’ ranked first in overall sales on Rakuten, Japan's largest e-commerce platform, in January this year. During the same period, products like ‘Greenderma Cica Cushion’ and ‘Eye Palette’ topped sales among all products on Qoo10, outperforming many competitive Japanese cosmetics companies.

Japan Cosmetics Export Ranking Rises from 4th to 2nd

According to Statistics Korea, the scale of cosmetics exports to Japan increased by 12% from January to May this year. Last year, it surged by more than 60% compared to the same period the previous year. The export ranking also jumped from 4th place in 2019 to 2nd place last year, surpassing the United States. Korean cosmetics have established themselves in Japan as products with high ‘cost-effectiveness’ and strong ‘trendiness.’ Strengthening marketing using Hallyu stars also played a part.

Nature Republic raised brand awareness through its exclusive model NCT 127 and successfully settled in the Japanese market through digital marketing collaborations with popular local beauty influencers. Nature Republic explained, "Within one year of entering the Japanese e-commerce market, sales increased by more than 600% compared to the previous year, thanks to positive responses from local consumers."

Nature Republic also introduced Japan-exclusive products reflecting local consumers’ preference for easy-to-use daily mask sheets and light wipe-type pads. These include the ‘Greenderma Mild Cica Daily Mask Sheet,’ ‘Greenderma Mild Cica Soothing Pad,’ and ‘Vitafair C Daily Mask Sheet.’ The ‘Greenderma Mild Cica Daily Mask Sheet’ has gained high popularity, ranking first in the beauty category on Qoo10 this month.

Innisfree, operating 21 stores in Japan, is also continuously growing. Its top three selling products in Japan are the 'Green Tea Seed Serum,' 'No-Sebum Mineral Powder,' and 'Super Volcanic Pore Clay Mask 2X.' The 'Black Tea Youth Enhancing Ampoule' also entered the Japanese market in January this year and is selling rapidly. Etude's 'Hershey Kisses' makeup collection, simultaneously released overseas in February, experienced early sell-outs. The 'Glass Rouge Tint' also gained popularity, being selected as the 'Best Cosmetics of the First Half of 2021' on 'LIPS,' a representative curation site for people in their teens and twenties.

Some products were launched first in Japan. Missha’s ‘Magic Cushion Neo Cover,’ released domestically this year, was introduced in Japan in April last year and sold 390,000 units by the end of the year.

Japan’s MZ Generation, Main Consumers of ‘K-Beauty’

Japan’s ‘K-Beauty’ craze has intensified since last year, riding the wave of the revived ‘4th Hallyu.’ The Hallyu wave, which began in 2004 with ‘Winter Sonata,’ saw a second wave centered on idol groups like Big Bang, Girls’ Generation, and Kara in 2010, and a third wave led by girl group TWICE in the late 2010s, who sold over 250,000 albums five times consecutively.

Since last year, Korean dramas such as ‘Crash Landing on You’ and ‘Itaewon Class,’ along with K-pop groups like BTS and Tomorrow X Together, have exploded in popularity in Japan through online video services (OTT), greatly increasing interest in Korean lifestyle products including cosmetics, food, and fashion. This year, the drama ‘Vincenzo’ ranked first in the top 10 content on Netflix Japan, further boosting popularity. Unlike previous Hallyu waves centered on middle-aged and older generations, the current wave is led by the MZ generation (born between 1981 and early 2000s), who are less influenced by anti-Korean sentiment. Surprised by this trend, Japanese media such as Asahi have focused on the popularity of Korean culture despite worsening Korea-Japan relations.

Innisfree Tokyo Omotesando Store

Expanding to the 30s to 50s Age Group

Recently, the consumer base for Korean cosmetics has expanded from teenagers and people in their twenties to those in their 30s to 50s. Cosmetics companies believe that premium cosmetics can also gain an advantage over Japanese brands like Shiseido. Kaoru Norimatsu, CEO of Japanese advertising company Miru Gate, analyzed in a KOTRA article, "While Japan generally has a weak and persistent awareness of beauty, Korea traditionally maintains teachings about what is good for beauty and continuously pursues transformation through beauty, boldly experimenting with new cosmetics at a considerable pace." He added, "Because of the stifling everyday life where big changes are hard to expect, Japanese people seek stimulation and demand Korean cosmetics that offer experiences that seem to change their daily lives."