Olive Young vs. Silicon Two: K-beauty Pioneers Compete for Global Market Expansion

Olive Young Partners with Sephora to Expand Global Distribution Network
Silicon Two Pursues Direct Entry with "Moida" Alongside Vendor Operations

As K-Beauty establishes itself as a key growth driver in the global beauty market, domestic cosmetics distributors are accelerating their overseas expansion. Olive Young, the largest multi-brand shop (MBS) channel in Korea, has joined forces with Sephora, the world’s leading beauty distributor, to expand its global distribution network. Meanwhile, Silicontwo, which has long supported K-Beauty brands in entering international markets, is moving beyond its role as an intermediary seller to directly enter the global beauty market.

According to the beauty industry on January 25, Olive Young officially signed a partnership with Sephora this month. Starting in the second half of this year, Olive Young will establish dedicated “K-Beauty Zones” in Sephora stores across six regions: the United States, Canada, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, and Hong Kong, showcasing carefully selected K-Beauty brand products. While the number may vary by store, each K-Beauty Zone is expected to feature an average of 18 brands and about 80 SKUs. Olive Young also plans to expand these zones to the Middle East, the United Kingdom, and Australia in the future.

Olive Young Curates K-Beauty for Sephora... U.S. Flagship Store to Open This Year

In addition to its collaboration with Sephora, Olive Young is also making a direct entry into the U.S. market. After establishing a subsidiary in Los Angeles, California, early last year, Olive Young is set to open its first U.S. store in Pasadena, California, this May. The company is also considering opening multiple stores across California, including in LA Westfield, in succession. By pursuing a “two-track strategy” of both the Sephora partnership and its own store openings, Olive Young aims to rapidly expand K-Beauty brand recognition. Brands featured in Sephora stores will also be available on Sephora’s online platform.

Interior view of Sephora Champs-?lys?es in Paris, France. A Korean-style skincare zone has been set up to introduce K-Beauty brands.

In this collaboration, Olive Young is responsible for curation and marketing, while Sephora handles local distribution and sales execution. Sephora has actively expanded the K-Beauty category, including creating dedicated “K-Beauty Skincare” zones in major stores across the United States and Europe. Currently, major brands such as Beauty of Joseon, Glow Recipe, Laneige, Innisfree, Aestura, Torriden, and Biodance are featured. Leading cosmetics company Amorepacific has exclusive sales agreements for certain brands for a set period. While Sephora maintains a strategy focused on premium brands, the growing strategic importance of K-Beauty has led to portfolio expansion through collaboration with Olive Young.

Competitor Ulta Beauty has already made K-Beauty a core strategy, creating dedicated zones both online and offline and engaging in active marketing. Key brands include Anua, Medicube, TirTir, and Pyunkang Yul. An Olive Young representative stated, “Leveraging Olive Young’s strengths in direct curation and marketing, we will deliver trends currently attracting attention in Korea. Ultimately, our goal is to grow together with Olive Young in the global market, while enabling each brand to be competitive individually on the global stage.”

Silicontwo: Beyond Vendor to Online-Offline Cosmetics Platform

Interior view of the Moida store located in downtown Paris. Approximately 40 to 50 brands are housed here. In the UK, there are three stores, starting with the first store at Westfield London.

Silicontwo, which has supplied K-Beauty brands to global distributors, is now strengthening its direct distribution strategy. Serving as a vendor to global distribution and platform clients such as Ulta Beauty, TikTok, Boots, and Target, Silicontwo also operates its own online mall and offline stores, employing a two-track approach.

In the United States, the top export market for K-Beauty, Silicontwo is pursuing an all-out expansion by acting as a vendor to global platforms and retailers, operating the offline “Moida” stores and the online mall “StyleKorean.” In Europe, the company is focusing on Moida stores in London, UK, and Paris, France, strengthening its direct entry strategy. There are currently three Moida stores open in the UK. Moving beyond vendor and online mall operations,Silicontwo aims to internalize the entire distribution process by securing direct contact with local consumers through offline stores.

The core competitive edge of its offline strategy lies in logistics. Silicontwo has established logistics hubs around the world, enabling rapid product supply. The brand network accumulated through supporting K-Beauty brands’ overseas expansion is also a major strength. In Europe, the company operates a warehouse in Poland; in the Middle East, in Dubai, UAE; and last October, it set up a base in Mexico to target South America. Building on this, Silicontwo is working to expand its store presence in Paris, France, and plans to open additional Moida stores in Germany, Italy, Spain, the Middle East, and South America.

Silicontwo aims to contribute to the expansion of the K-Beauty market by creating a virtuous cycle that connects online and offline channels. Products that have proven sales performance online are introduced in offline stores, and consumer responses observed in stores are fed back into online sales and brand product strategies. Through this, the company plans to accumulate data on trends, ingredient preferences, and price resistance in each country.

A Silicontwo representative said, “Our strengths lie in having global logistics hubs and securing cosmetics trend data for each country. While expanding the overall K-Beauty market, we will also grow Silicontwo into a global platform that provides the fastest access to Korean beauty trends.”