The Asian Encountering Beauty Creator

Editor-in-Chief Barbara Koh delved into the beauty-full world of AmorePacific on a trip to Seoul and Jeju Island in South Korea

- Barbara Koh

Brands like Etude House, Hera, Innisfree, Laneige, Mamonde and Sulwhasoo have become familiar names in Singapore, especially with those who have a penchant for Korean beauty products. But not everyone knows they all come from one South Korean powerhouse beauty company.

The AmorePacific story is Disneyesque. In fact, if you ever get a chance to visit the Story Garden by AmorePacific, at the Osan Beauty Campus in Seoul, you’ll get to see an inspiring animated short movie of how Suh Sung-Whan founded the company over 70 years ago. It all started with his mother, a woman ahead of her time, who believed in sustainable sourcing, creating pure hand-pressed oil from the camellia nut tree, and selling it. Sung-Whan continued the business with the same philosophy, to provide a healthy and beautiful life to customers around the world with the Korean company’s beauty products.

From its beginnings, the company has established itself as an Asian Beauty Creator (ABC); and one that has a deep connection with nature. Native Korean ingredients such as camellia, ginseng and green tea, are used in its products. That same camellia oil the founder’s mother used to sell now features in many of the company’s products, including Sulwhasoo’s Camellia Hair Oil, Mamonde’s Age-Control Camellia Oil, and Hera’s UV Mist Cushion.