On March 12, 2025, Walmart held a global e-commerce launch event (Beauty & Cosmetics) at the Seoul Dragon City Hotel, opening the door for Korean beauty and cosmetic sellers to enter the global market through the Walmart platform. This event is evaluated as a strategic move to strengthen competitiveness in the premium beauty market by combining Walmart's global strategy with the strengths of K-beauty, rather than simply a place to share information.
Why is Walmart focusing on Korean beauty sellers? This event focused on Walmart's global e-commerce vision and beauty market expansion strategy, emphasizing that the innovation and quality of the Korean beauty industry are in line with Walmart's premium strategy. The global competitiveness of K-beauty, strengthening of the premium market, and growth potential of the global e-commerce platform are key backgrounds for Walmart to pay attention to Korean sellers.
Three Strategic Backgrounds for Walmart's Focus on K-Beauty
1) Global Competitiveness of K-Beauty: Synergy of Innovation and Quality
The Korean beauty industry is recognized worldwide for its innovative product capabilities and high quality, represented by K-beauty. Brands such as COSRX, Dr.Jart+, and Laneige have already achieved great success in the global market, raising the status of K-beauty. Walmart is implementing a strategy to strengthen its position in the premium beauty market by utilizing this global competitiveness of K-beauty.
2) Premium Beauty Market Expansion: Capture the Change in Customer Base
Walmart is pursuing a strategy to expand its customer base to premium product groups, moving away from its existing mass image. By attracting high-end beauty brands through collaboration with UK's Space NK ("BeautySpaceNK"), it is targeting high-income customers. The innovation and quality of Korean beauty brands are evaluated as suitable factors for this strategy.