[Stock in Focus] NanoEntek Targets Beauty Tech Market with Global Leader L'Oreal

NanoEntek's stock price is strong after achieving impressive results in the first half of this year. The news that the company will officially launch the skin aging analysis device "Cell Bioprint," co-developed with L'Oreal, in the first half of next year appears to be influencing the stock. NanoEntek transferred the relevant technology and device patents to L'Oreal in 2014, and L'Oreal has registered related patents in about 10 countries worldwide.

Beauty tech company APR has also seen its stock price surge by 340% this year on the back of strong performance, which seems to be boosting investor sentiment. APR's market capitalization has surpassed 8 trillion won.

As of 2:47 p.m. on August 21, NanoEntek was trading at 3,995 won, up 675 won (20.33%) from the previous trading day.

Cell Bioprint will undergo pre-testing within this year and begin full-scale production in November. It is scheduled for an official launch in March next year under Lancome, the top-tier luxury brand among L'Oreal Group's 40 or so brands.

The two companies will provide a personalized, integrated skincare solution based on Cell Bioprint. The integrated skincare solution consists of a protein extraction kit (PED), the measurement device "Cell Bioprint," SARA cartridges, and an app for analyzing target skin proteins.

Cell Bioprint is a point-of-care testing (POCT) device that can precisely analyze and diagnose skin aging predictive protein markers within three minutes in various settings such as department stores, brand shops, and clinics. Unlike conventional image-based analysis, NanoEntek's proprietary protein extraction device (PED) allows for the actual extraction of skin proteins.

A company representative stated, "Cell Bioprint is a next-generation beauty device that combines NanoEntek's protein extraction and lab-on-a-chip platform technologies with L'Oreal's biomarker technology, making it an ideal solution for personalized skincare. As development is progressing smoothly, we expect to secure differentiated competitiveness in the global beauty tech market after the official launch in the first half of next year."

According to global market research firm The Research Company, the beauty tech market is projected to grow to $116.17 billion (approximately 162 trillion won) by 2028. As the competitiveness of Korean cosmetics continues to rise not only in Asia but also in North America and Europe, attention is focused on whether NanoEntek will create another innovative success story through its global launch in collaboration with L'Oreal-the world's No. 1 beauty company (with sales of about 70 trillion won, or 43.48 billion euros as of 2024)-based on its innovative skin analysis technology, a new business model for K-beauty.