Revealed Right After the Korea-US Summit, Drawing Attention
Likely Purchased at a Local Olive Young Store
As US President Donald Trump made a state visit to Korea on the occasion of the 2025 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit held in Gyeongju, White House Press Secretary Caroline Levitt, 28, who accompanied him, drew attention with a “proof shot” of her Korean cosmetics purchase posted on social media.
Even the White House Press Secretary Shows Her Love ... Boasts About Korean Cosmetics Purchase on Instagram
US President Donald Trump and the youngest White House spokesperson Caroline Levitt. On the right is a photo confirming the purchase of Korean cosmetics posted by spokesperson Levitt. Instagram capture
On October 29, a photo featuring 12 Korean cosmetics products was uploaded to Levitt’s Instagram Story. The image, accompanied by heart emojis, included the caption “South Korea skincare finds.” The photo displayed products from various domestic brands such as Chosungah Beauty, Mediheal, Torriden, and VT Cosmetics, mainly focusing on skincare items like sheet masks, pore pads, glow serums, cleansing oils, and sunscreen.
Although Levitt did not specify where she bought the Korean cosmetics, the fact that some products in the photo were labeled as “Olive Young Special Edition” suggests she purchased them at Olive Young, a must-visit shopping destination for foreign visitors.
Born in 1997, Levitt is a Republican politician who began her political activities as a university student. When she was appointed as White House Press Secretary in November last year at the age of 27, she became the youngest person in US history to hold the position, drawing significant attention. She currently has 2.58 million Instagram followers. Recently, she stirred controversy by responding to a White House reporter’s question about who decided to hold the US-Russia summit in Budapest with, “Your Mom did.”
K-Beauty, Powered by K-Culture, Ranks No. 1 in US Cosmetics Imports
Caroline Levitt, White House Press Secretary, is answering questions from reporters in the White House briefing room on June 19 (local time). Photo by Yonhap News
Meanwhile, fueled by the global popularity of Hallyu, including K-pop, K-beauty is enjoying a surge in popularity worldwide, especially in the United States. According to Bloomberg in March, Korea’s cosmetics exports to the US last year reached $1.701 billion (about 2.5 trillion won), surpassing France ($1.263 billion, about 1.8 trillion won). Canada ranked third with $1.022 billion (about 1.5 trillion won), followed by Italy, China, Mexico, the United Kingdom, and Japan.
Experts attribute the K-beauty boom to the success of K-culture. The Korean cosmetics industry is benefiting from the global popularity of K-pop and K-dramas, and companies are leveraging product sponsorships to introduce a wide variety of products to the US market, according to media reports. Last year, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety also announced that the value of Korean cosmetics exports worldwide-including to the US, the world’s largest market-rose by 20.6% year-on-year to $10.2 billion (about 15 trillion won), surpassing $10 billion for the first time after reaching $9.2 billion (about 13.5 trillion won) in 2021.
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