In the first quarter of this year (January–March), exports of haircare products by K‑beauty companies reached a record high. As the global trend of “skinification,” which involves treating the scalp and hair with the same level of care as facial skin, becomes established, trust in K‑beauty brands is extending to hair products.

According to export–import trade statistics from the Korea Customs Service on 20 May, exports of domestic haircare products in the first quarter of this year totaled USD 135.72 million (about KRW 204.5 billion). This is the highest quarterly figure on record. Compared with the same period a year earlier (USD 101.17 million), this represents an increase of about 34.2%. Export volume in the first quarter was 17,252 tons, up 45.2% from 11,881 tons in the same period last year.

The share of hair products in the shopping baskets of inbound foreign tourists to Korea is also on the rise, in addition to robust local demand overseas. At CJ Olive Young, sales of hair cleansing products such as shampoos and rinses from January to April this year increased by more than 50% year-on-year. Over the same period, sales of hair oils doubled, while scalp supplements and ampoules rose 120%. The personal care (body and hair) product group recorded a 52% year-on-year sales increase last year, posting the highest growth among all categories.

This is because rising trust in Korean brands, built on the global success of K‑beauty, is driving higher demand for Korean haircare products. Kim Min-ji, Principal Researcher at Euromonitor International, said, “Through the existing success of K‑beauty, the perception has taken hold that Korean brands offer high efficacy at reasonable prices,” adding, “This trust has carried over into haircare, a category adjacent to beauty.”

The global expansion of the functional scalp‑focused care market has also played a role. According to global data analytics firm Euromonitor, the size of the global haircare market grew about 21%, from USD 81.4 billion (about KRW 115.7964 trillion, based on an exchange rate of KRW 1,422.56) in 2022 to USD 98.5 billion (about KRW 140.1222 trillion) last year. Hwang Jae-sun, Manager of Aekyung Industrial’s PR team, said, “K‑haircare products are receiving greater attention thanks to their differentiation, emphasizing functional benefits such as hair loss prevention and nutrition supply.”

The domestic beauty industry is also accelerating efforts to tap into the global haircare market. Aekyung Industrial placed its haircare brand Kerasys in more than 390 Walmart stores in the United States in March. As a result, Kerasys’ overseas sales in the first quarter of this year alone increased 69.44% year-on-year. Other haircare brands such as “Cica Labo” and “Alpist” are being introduced at Polish drugstore chain Rossmann, marking a full‑scale push into the European market.

LG H&H’s “Dr. Groot” entered more than 600 Costco stores in North America in October last year and joined Sephora’s online mall in March this year, with entry into Sephora’s physical stores scheduled for August. Dr. Groot’s North American sales last year increased by more than 800% compared with the previous year. Amorepacific’s Mise-en-scène “Perfect Serum” ranked first in the hair styling oil category during Amazon’s Black Friday in the United States last year.

With growing demand for K‑haircare, more beauty companies are expanding their business domains. APR, which has centered its business on skincare cosmetics and beauty devices, announced in February this year that it plans to extend the Medicube product portfolio to include haircare.

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