Cosmetics on the rise for South Korea's convenience stores

Such stores in business districts saw a 226% leap in cosmetics sales.

South Korea’s convenience stores such as GS25 and CU are becoming a popular channel for sales of cosmetics products, Korea Bizwire reported.

GS25, which is run by GS Retail, reported an 18.2% rise in cosmetics sales last year compared to 2019, surpassing records from 2018 (15.4%) and 2019 (16.9%), reflecting rising consumer demand.

“In the past, lip balm comprised the majority of cosmetics sales at convenience stores. Now, sales of base makeups and color cosmetics are increasing quickly,” said GS25.

Convenience stores housing exclusive vendors for Lalavla, a health and beauty brand run by GS Retail, also reported a threefold surge in daily cosmetics sales.

At the same time, convenience stores in business districts reported a 226% YoY leap in cosmetics sales from November 2020 and January of this year. BGF Retail’s CU also reported a 6.7% growth in cosmetics sales last year compared to 2019.

Cosmetics sales at convenience stores have risen by more than 12% if they are located in regions with less accessibility to cosmetic products than cities or the greater Seoul area, CU explained.