[Market Focus] "Expectations for Expanded Cosmetics Exports" Pond Group Rises Over 5%

The stock price of Pond Group is on the rise, driven by expectations for expanded exports through its overseas cosmetics distribution business.

As of 9:31 a.m. on September 5, Pond Group was trading at 10,730 won, up 560 won (5.51%) from the previous trading day.

On this day, SK Securities commented on Pond Group, stating, "Depending on the performance of its cosmetics business next year, there is a possibility that the company could be re-evaluated as an overseas cosmetics distribution player." Pond Group's main brands in the fashion sector include Adidas, Puma, Calvin Klein, DKNY, Lacoste, and Kodak. In particular, for the SUPERDRY brand, the company acquired the intellectual property rights for the Asian region in the first quarter of 2023 and is developing it as its own brand.

Park Chansol, a researcher at SK Securities, said, "The main export businesses are the SUPERDRY brand and the cosmetics distribution business." He added, "Fashion exports in the first half of this year amounted to approximately 4.4 billion won, and the export target for SUPERDRY this year is estimated to be between 10 billion and 12 billion won."

He further explained, "Pond Group operates as a global consumer goods brand licensor, manufacturing products through OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) arrangements, but it excels at planning and distributing brands to fit each market. The company operates both fashion and cosmetics businesses, and as of the first half of this year, fashion accounted for about 90% of total sales."

The growth potential of the cosmetics business was particularly emphasized. Researcher Park stated, "The recently acquired cosmetics distributor Most Cosmetics (which handles brands such as COSRX, Biodance, and Beauty of Joseon) is expected to grow by around 50% this year, focusing on exports, with sales reaching 50 billion won and an operating margin of 30%." "With the acquisition of cosmetics distributor All Grace (which generates annual sales of about 15 billion won) to be completed by next month, the company is preparing to launch its own brand SELEVE and expand K-beauty brands into overseas online channels. The sales target for next year is set at 50 billion won," he added.