Jung Min-ho has worked as a staff writer at The Korea Times since 2012, mostly covering social and political issues. He currently belongs to the Politics & City Desk where he covers topics such as health, labor and human rights. Prior to joining the team, he was responsible for covering North Korea and sports. His article about a biosecurity breach of Middle East respiratory syndrome won him an award from the Korea Science Journalists Association in 2016. He is also the co-author of the book, "Medical Pioneers of Korea" (2019). He served as the head of the international relations committee at the Journalists Association of Korea from 2021 to 2023.
Seoul mayor backs K-beauty push in Vietnam
Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, center, looks at a cosmetics product displayed at the Vincom Mega Mall Royal City in Hanoi, Dec. 7. Courtesy of Seoul Metropolitan Government
By Jung Min-ho
Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon is stepping up support for Korea’s beauty industry, using his recent visit to Hanoi to promote “K-beauty” in one of its fastest-growing overseas markets.
The mayor on Thursday toured “Beyond the Beauty, B.the.B@DDP,” a K-beauty promotion zone set up at the Vincom Mega Mall Royal City in the Vietnamese capital, according to the Seoul Metropolitan Government on Monday.
The pop-up event ― part of his six-day Asia business trip that began on Dec. 4 ― is designed as an interactive showroom that lets visitors test products and services by category. A total of 13 promising Seoul-based beauty companies took part, showcasing their products.
The event drew a large crowd of young people, including a TikTok influencer with 1 million followers and some 200 people in their 20s and 30s, underscoring the rising appeal of Korean beauty products among Vietnam’s younger consumers, according to city officials.
Rising online retail and social media-driven consumption have helped Vietnam become one of Korea’s top five export markets for beauty products in recent years, amid hopes that the market will continue to expand along with the economy of the Southeast Asian country.
For Seoul’s beauty-tech firms, Vietnam is regarded as a strategic test bed: a place to gauge local demand while building brand awareness in the region. The Hanoi pop-up is also being used as a springboard for a longer-term foothold. After the three-day event, it is set to be converted into “B.the.B@DDP,” the first overseas permanent retail store under the Seoul Business Agency’s (SBA) “B.the.B” beauty complex cultural space brand.
“Seeing the enthusiasm and interest of Vietnamese consumers once again confirmed the potential of K-beauty,” Oh said, vowing to help beauty companies expand more aggressively overseas by creating similar platforms in cities around the world.
On the same day, the SBA, a city-funded agency established to promote its economy, signed a cooperation agreement with Vincom Retail, Vietnam’s largest retail operator, to support the entry of leading Seoul firms into the local market. Using sites such as Vincom Mega Mall Royal City as hubs, Vincom Retail is expected to provide permanent experience spaces for more Korean brands and act as a key platform for their growth in Vietnam.