Korea beauty firm Amorepacific earns 2022 profit of $3 mln in Vietnam

Amorepacific Vietnam Ltd., the Vietnamese subsidiary of South Korean beauty and cosmetics group Amorepacific, earned a profit of KRW3.77 billion ($2.87 million) in 2022, up 167.4% year-on-year.

The firm's revenue reached KRW41.93 billion ($31.91 million), up 32.5%, according to the parent company.

Amorepacific’s Vietnamese subsidiary, which involves sales of cosmetics, earned the group's fourth highest overseas profit, only after Hong Kong-based Amorepacific Global Operations Limited., Hong Kong-based Amorepacific Hong Kong Co., Limited., and France-based Annick Goutal S.A.S.

Regarding global operations, Amorepacific made a post-tax profit of KRW149.2 billion ($113.58 million) on a revenue of KRW4,495 billion ($3.42 billion) in 2022, down 48.9% and 15.6% year-on-year.

Founded in 2011, Amorepacific Vietnam is one of Amorepacific's global business units with famous brands such as Sulwhasoo, Laneige, Innisfree, Daily Beauty and Vital Beautie. The firm opened its first official stores in Vietnam for the Sulwhasoo brand in 2013, Innisfree in 2016, and Laneige in 2017.

Vietnam’s cosmetics market has seen growing demand among consumers. Spending on cosmetics and healthcare products in Vietnam reached 6.6% of GDP in 2019, and could hit a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.7%, according to local market researcher Virac.

The current value of Vietnam’s cosmetics market is about $4 billion, according to the Vietnam Essential Oils Aromas and Cosmetics Association (VOCA). Of which, foreign businesses accounted for 60-70% of the market share, the association noted.

South Korea’s cosmetics exports to Vietnam surged 43.4% year-on-year to $187.5 million in the first five months of this year, the highest growth rate among South Korea’s export markets, the Korea Herald reported.

The South Korean daily added that the growth in Vietnam indicated the Southeast Asian nation could become an alternative market for South Korean firms due to a worsening performance in China amid political tensions between China and South Korea.