I just think Korean brands have a lot more to offer, so brands like Sephora don't bring anything new to the table. People prefer to return to a tried and tested brand they trust to give good results!
Sephora in Korea is smaller than locations in the major cities of the US and they don't carry many brands. Olive Young, Chicor and many other local shops already mentioned here already exist and the K-Beauty products are very good and much cheaper. The only reason you would go to Sephora is if you need darker shades that local brands do not offer. That's a small margin of consumers.
And most western brands don’t really cater to Korean beauty standards. Shades aren’t as pale, products are more bold and pigmented, and makeup is made to go on fairly heavy. Not to mention how bad Sephora’s stores in some foreign countries typically are. I went to a major one in Italy and they had only a select few luxury lipsticks💀
@@TenderNoodleI went to Sephora in Spain and there is genuinely no point in going to a Sephora outside the U.S. I live in NYC and have two sephoras near me. My closest one is what I consider the small Sephora yet it is better than anything I saw in Europe.
@@rimun5235yeah, I’m from a smaller-ish city in Spain and our Sephora es pretty small, quite expensive and don’t have much variety of products, so people tend to go across the street to Primor which is another beauty store that has a ton of brands, has a big price range (there’s very cheap brands but also luxury stuff), has a big variety of products and is just so much more worth it. Many people also go to Druni which is another drugstore chain and also has a lot of brands and variety. That also explains why we have several of those stores all over the city but only one Sephora
Honestly cause they probably realized that their expensive makeup ain’t that much better than affordable olive young makeup, the only plus that sephora brought to them was probably a wider range of foundation shades which is great but i don’t think it’s bringing them enough money
So, I am from Bangladesh. I am currently studying in the US. So, when I am in the US, my skin gets very dry and when I am in Bangladesh, my face gets so oily that sometimes I look like I have intentionally washed my face with oil or something. In fact, the beauty products that I take back from the US, despite how expensive they might be, simply do not work in Bangladeshi weather. So, I definitely think that the weather has a lot to do with it. Also, western beauty brands are formulated for a certain demographic of people and their formulations may not work as well on people from other countries as the beauty products that were developed in their own country.
bc there isn’t a space that sephora fills in korea. korea has a very established makeup & skincare industry, so it’s very hard for a foreign franchise to worm its way in successfully.
From memory, Olive Young and Chicor (not to mention big department stores like Shinsegae and Hyundai) already carry a lot of Western brands such as Benefit, Two Faced, Urban Decay, Charlotte Tilbury, Hourglass, Lancome, Estee Lauder, Shiseido, MUFE, MAC, NARS, Bobbi Brown, Sisley, Cle de Peau, Laura Mercier, Stila, Chanel, YSL etc. I don't know how many brands are Korean Sephora exclusive and not available elsewhere but I would hazard to guess not many. I don't know how much discount incentives Korean Sephora offers once the novelty wears off because Olive Young and Chicor already have constant promos and loyalty programs
Well considering that many of my Korean girl friends say that many of brands in Sephora are too pigmented and they don't use a lot of strong colors in their makeup it's kinda not surprising. 😅 I think the products just don't meet the needs of most/many Korean women and even if they bought something maybe they also use it less/less often so they don't need to buy another too soon (I mean like dry products).
This reminds me of when Target came to Canada. They opened with a lot of hype only to quietly close down shortly after. Might happen to Sephora in Korea too lol.
it's really common for a business to record a deficit for the first few years of breaking into a market in a different country. operating at a loss on one store for a while isn't really going to be a concern to them, they're too big of a company for it to be an instant sign of failure. that said, people are creatures of habit and a store that sells only makeup/beauty products already exists in the sk market so my guess is a lot of people went to sephora excitedly, saw it wasn't that big of a deal and went back to shopping where they usually shop.
Probably because they deal mostly in western brands that don’t really fit with the asian beauty aesthetic of less is more, and valuing good skincare over covering everything in makeup
Two years deficit for a brand that's venturing into a new region/market actually isn't a clean-cut indication of a "failure". Actually, expecting to turn a profit in the first two year is the unrealistic assumption.
I don't think a deficit means that it hasn't started profiting. In my understanding, a deficit means that they're experiences monthly losses, as in they aren't making enough each month to even cover their operational expenses.
I mean Korea has a lot to offer within the makeup category! I'm pretty sure if they start to be inclusive with the shade ranges they'd out market Sephora in no time
I personally don’t think so. I’ve tried some K beauty makeup and to me, it’s not worth it. I love some Japanese brands though because their foundations have unique formulations. I feel plenty of western créateurs tried Korean brands yet I rarely ever see them using them frequently.
The only bad point about kbeauty products is that they dont care for darker skin tones - and I mean even slightly tan with warm or neutral undertones. If they could grow past that, they would win in every aspect because the attention they put towards skin health is the best. Sadly, cant have the best of both worlds 😔
THIS!!! I've been wearing korean makeup for almost 10 years and the concealer that I'm using is actually for contouring lol and it's not even that dark. But I really like korean makeup cuz it doesn't break me out due to the ingredients and the skincare in the makeup itself. I wanted to try western makeup few weeks ago and when I looked at the amount of shades SEPHORA has, I was overwhelmed lol. I did buy a few different brands but ended up breaking out so I went back to korean makeup.
@@kkotdol_from_Bangbae Is this really a question you're curious about? Korea, especially as more foreigners are coming, has way more darker skinned people than you think, and it would just overall be more helpful for more people, and it most likely won't sacrifice much to simply create more shades for more skin colors. Not only would darker shades be helpful to the plethora of darker skinned people in korea, it would also allow korean brands to increase their reach and benefit more. Why is that so much of kpop especially, can use the culture of foreigners and use that to benefit themselves, but it's suddenly too much to ask for kbeauty brands to create shades for darker skinned people, especially when it would also benefit them and bring more sales? Think about what you're arguing.
@@user-ke3jj8bi4fI wonder about that: if the sales would be worth the production actually. We know many brands are owned by big companies like amore pacific which also have brands that carry more than the typical shades, so they probably do have the numbers to back it up wether or not formulation, marketing and production would be worth it compared to the money earned by selling. At the end of the day we are talking about a company here, I'm sure they would produce more of there was a notable demand that would pay itself, they do afterall want to make as much money as possible.
A lot of toners K Beauty offers don’t have some of the exfoliation I look for. They may have some glycolic acid stuff, but a lot of it is like serum toners… Mama needs her lactic acid.
@BigJohnsonMine Child, your ignorance is showing. Yes, there are darker skin tones in Korea, some people naturally tan no matter what their skin tone is at first. Even your fave kpop celebrities, just take a look at the photos where their foundation is 3 shades whiter than their natural skin tone. So take your patronising and uneducated self elsewhere.
Korean brands are anyways better and either very natural based or "hi-tech" ingredients - why would you go for cheap US dollar store cosmetics - that's not even for korean skin ??? Korean folks can definitely take credit and be proud of their skincare and cosmetics industry.
Sephora doesn’t sell anything close to dollar store cosmetics, wtaf are you on about? The majority of what Sephora has in their stores is expensive high end cosmetics and luxury brands, they carry good products that are used and loved by many people. It’s all just far too expensive to only juuuust now be entering the Korean market and expecting consumers to need them in any way whatsoever. Korea has had the beauty industry 100% figured out for years and years- Korean brands and dermatologists have perfected formulations, technologies, and treatments, and their marketing strategies are the cherry on top. They have set the standards and expectations very high- beauty products and services are expected to be high quality for a fair price. Sephora is far too late to the game to be successful there, and on top of that, they’ve already been struggling in the US market.
I don't know what the beauty market is like over there, could it be because therea already so many products on the market and a vast array of product available already so people are just going back to brands they know and trust or maybe the novelty of having a sephora has worn off, or a combination of all these?
There are just a lot of really great and established Korean brands and stores already. In the US your main/only options are either Sephora, Ulta, or a drugstore. Also I could be wrong, but with the general trend of make up in Korea, a lot of the big ticket items that Sephora does really well with in the US like eyeshadow palettes or lipstick variety probably wouldn’t be quite as popular in Korea where it’s usually more common to go with a more natural makeup look. That said, since it’s in Seoul I’m a little surprised they’re not doing better.
is it just selling western beauty products? as far as i know, most korean makeup is cheaper and even better quality than the expensive western makeup, so there’s really no point in buying stuff from sephora if you’re in korea.
I prefer korean beauty products even asian in general to western. I still use some stuff from western brands that I keep buying. But to try anything new korean products almost always deliver what I wanted.
I don't really wear make up that much. But of o do I only wear fenty beauty products. But I definitely love skincare and only use medicube. Medicube was the best discovery ever for me. My skin has never felt this good and looked so healthy and hydrated. #koreanskincarealwaysandforever
I actually love this! It seems to me that Korean beauty products have proven that they are superior in quality that Koreans don’t even feel the need to turn to Western products anymore. Trust me, it is very hard to even shift a mindset to buy and trust local products where I am from. I am super happy for Korea!! I’m still waiting on a day like this to happen where my people will start believing and preferring local brands.
I think it’s the brand choices - there are some popular brands they could promote but they don’t - whenever I’ve been people gravitate to fenty and hourglass for make up but not much else (make-up wise)
Depends on what the sephora is offering. In my country I'd rather shop online than buy at sephora because they dont have brands that are trending right now that I'm excited to try (dont event have rare and fenty, although rare entered the market a few weeks ago). With the price point, a lot of us shop at sephora to look for trending products we see at social media and there's no point of going there too often if they dont have it.
It's the Australian Starbucks-Struggle. They came into an oversaturated market, probably didn't check what people really wanted and are trying to sell to an audience with higher standards and a wider selection without changing their productline.
I’m from the US and I wouldn’t know about any beauty products I don’t really wear any, and when I do it’s usually my sisters since I usually break out from makeup
I was in COEX mall and I can see why it would struggling and I barely saw anyone in the store. Also it looked so different than a traditional Sephora store here in the states and most products are in the $$ range in price plus a lot western brands get their products produced in Korea now a days. I would rather much buy from Olive young or Style Korea. Sephora needs to rethink their strategy in South Korea.
For me I just prefer which ever works for me at the time Kbeauty and western beauty products all have their time and place for me. I think if the Sephora is catering to the Korean market by including kbeauty brands that might help them. My friends in Korea said it tends to have mostly western products and it’s fine but Kbeauty just sells better.
Korea has a plethora of makeup brands and stores, which includes affordable to luxury. Also, sephora carries a lot of foreign brands (in terms of style compared to other kbeauty brands) which dont always fit the "korean beauty standards." I only go to sephora for things like foundation when im in Korea, as most stores dont carry many shades. However, everything else can be found in one of the many makeup stores around Seoul and other major cities
I’d say Sephora is more inclusive and the variety it offers has a larger reach. However, that type of reach isn’t a strong due to the minority population in Korea still not being dominant force like that of the US or UK. Korea has Olive Young, which is the obvious competitor. However, like many of the beauty shops in Korea, it tends to cater directly to the Korean/East Asian in mind. So those who have darker complexions lose out or are sold products that undermine their skin. Having lived in Korea and knowing POCs living in Seoul, Olive Young is not the place to go sometimes and it sucks cus got some phenomenal products.
Merci. I think the koreans are comfortable with kbeauty sold in korea. Plus they find sephora international items pricey. Not sure if worth buying. When they work hard for the korean won.
A lot of people might switch because of the ingredients in the beauty products but I can't really say for sure I would think Korean products might use more natural ingredients I can't be sure on that cuz I'm not an expert
It's probably the price. I rarely shop at Sephora, but when I do I like it because it's a store that's (almost) all makeup, but when you have other options nearby why would you choose the one where you can't get an eyeliner for less than 15 USD
when i lived in korea i would much rather go to olive young or etude house to get my make up and skin care. I tend to trust korean brands more than i do us-american brands that you can find at sephora.
i have an olive undertone, pale neutral leaning in winter, so I can only use k-beauty foundations. a lot koreans have my undertone and companys have always one that I can use. not so western brands, sephora has 2-3 lighter olive toned foundations and they are on the higher end. i rather buy 5 k-beauty foundations to try them for an affordable price... their model doesn't work if they don't crater to the demographic.
I think it’s because when you think of Sephora you think of really American products that we can’t and so when it does come to our country we are disappointed that we still can’t get the American beauty products. Plus, kbeauty just has more to offer. It’s more about the health of your skin rather than the brightness of your eyeshadow.
I think they have a lot more brands that are tailored more to the asian look and complexion than Sephora can offer. Just like how some brands are more tailored for darker skin tones.
Just like Hong Kong, I noticed you showed a picture of them too. There’s too many department stores that sold makeup and cheap makeup stores called SaSa. So yes like olive young, department stores and myeongdong. Lots of choices. Sephora is expensive!!! 😅 and my second thought is the makeup itself. Foreigners like bright colour makeup and contouring and lashes. Korean makeup looks more natural
@Priscillakwon I used to build Sephora stores all over the USA. All of their stores outside the USA struggle. They originally opened as a fragrance only store in France, I think? They moved into cosmetics in their first USA store in SoHo, Manhattan, NYC, NY. but their non-USA stores don't do well.
I would say it depends. From the K-Beauty products I have tried, they’ve done wonders for me, while most American products somewhat leave my skin feeling oily and not cared for. On top of that, Sephora tends to get in a lot of controversies with who they work with and stuff, and Koreans already have a surplus of beauty brands and skin care stores that offer the same or even better products then Sephora ever did, so I think that is why Sephora is experiencing this deficit.
Korean products are much more effective and often can find better prices. Why would anyone shop at Sephora when there's so many awesome products made in Korea.
Because, why would someone need expensive sephora make up when they can get the same result with cheap local aka korean brand? No countries are able to do this yet, that's why sephora is a thing
they don’t have as good as a selection as stores like chicor, everything is always out of stock or “coming soon”, and they carry like two brands with dark shades so they’re completely missing a potentially lucrative market amongst foreigners
They should have tried to integrate the best of the best. Korean & Western & European beauty. Personally, I am westerner and use Korean beauty products. 😊❤
I haven't tried a ton of K Beauty but I really liked the BB cream I bought from that brand Primo? I still have it and don't know the name. I think it's much more comfortable than foundation and it seems to not break me out.
I love kbeauty and jbeauty skincare over western products. I haven't tried their makeup however because I'm too dark for their face makeup but I do want to try their eye makeup.
Korean brands are catering to Korean skins, they are also advanced in skin care and packaging is always a winner, so it’s a no brainier something as basic as Sephora would eventually flop after the novelty wears off. I prefer Korean beauty products because even though I’m Western by birth, my south Asian skin doesn’t do well with western products.
I lived in UK and they don’t have Sephora too, there is Boots but it’s very similar to Sephora. Korean brands really like to block western brands though and Sephora is MUCH more expensive than Korean Olive Young. Back in my country I wasn’t able to afford Sephora make up and it was also almost empty most of the time but at Olive young I can afford every make up product I want. I think there are many brands that fit Korean standards but it was also open in a covid time.
because korean brands cater to korean faces and skin needs much better. i also think its cheaper and technologically more advanced. Most brands are a little old school and dont have stuff that koreans mostly use like a cushion, or glitter and brown liners for aegyosal and stuff like that. even if they do, local brands are just cheaper so why go to sephora?
Sephora undermined the Korean market and the quality and affordability of Korean beauty products. This is a country where most people revolve around vanity, ya try harder than your typical overpriced stuff.
1. they opened right before covid 2. Sephora had hype bc it's international, but it's very expensive, and compared to korean brands, sephora isn't offering anything better than what they can already get, but they are selling it at fouble the price.
Because they are not as popular, they dont have many store. Their return policy sucks just like the rest of the korean stores. However, their prices stay the same as US. So unless I have some ride or die product I must need, I never step foot in sephora. Before moving to korea, I was a rouge. Havent been since. Sorry not sorry. Beside, Korea also has Chicor, which carries about 65% whatever sephora carries, and it's everywhere.
I never step inside Sephora because they don't have affordable products. I live in Spain and there are other options that are way better... Maybe people in South Korea feel there's nothing special there so it's not worth it.
In order for Sephora to do good in another country's market. They would have to adapt to that particular country's beauty products. They can't just keep everything on Western beauty.
Because novelties always wear off and classic, tried and true products always win out over them, plus skin care is winning over makeup these days and it's more affordable elsewhere so probably all of those reasons
I guess because a lot of middle-high school students use more makeup/skincare in Korea. So Sephora is also kind of expensive and alot of young students cannot afford expensive makeup products. So Olive Young is a great brand for the students so students picked Olive young over Sephora....
Why go to sephora when you have olive young and a whole bunch of different skincare brands the moment you step outside the hotel or your apartment. A lot of koreans do prefer korean/japanese skin care brands compared to ones from the West. Also, i think Western brands have a little bit of a strong formulation and scent.
I visit korea annually to stock up on my beauty and cosmetics from oliveyoung. Sephora is just way overpriced. Olive young always have promotions and a huge range to choose from.
Koreans would be proud to have a korean beauty brand. However, the 2 year deficit can be attributed to poor brand ambassadors and marketing on social media. By doing a quick search, there isn't a good brand ambassador to promote sephora; a beautiful vlogger such as yourself, or any beautiful korean with kpop looks can raise the brand value and promote sales
2019? The year Covid came? That’s easy…they opened, had what 2 months before December and then got hosed because of no foot traffic. Since it was their first store, it’s unlikely they had any shipping available yet, and when the government tells you to reduce unnecessary trips you aren’t going to go browse an unfamiliar store. By the time restrictions were lifted, the buzz was gone.
Maybe Sephora's brands are more expensive. As a US citizen I am amazed at how inexpensive K brands are. I love K skin care and use them on the daily along with my Western brands but for makeup (ie. Lip sticks, foundations, blushes, etc) I prefer Western brands, mainly because I feel that they last longer and have more color varieties.
It’s definitely gotta be Olive Young. I had seen a Olive Young in every mall/center i went to, and they’re probably more used to those korean products. Also, I’ve seen some Western companies in olive young so maybe that too?
I live in the States and rarely buy from Sephora…I buy mainly K beauty from overseas. They work better for my skin. The only non Asian brand that I love are Dr. Dennis Gross peel pads. But that’s it. And K beauty products are so expensive at Sephora….
I mean I prefer Asian skincare/makeup, its usually so much cheaper and better anyways. Plus Sephora is expensive and if there's cheaper places to shop people will go there instead
I absolutely loved Olive Young when I was in Korea, prices were cheaper than I expected and when I visited sephora in a different country, it was just expensive and overhyped. I loved olive young a lot more. plus korean products are better than western products imo
When it comes to skincare I prefer korean skincare but I prefer western make up. However, when I went to Sephora in Seoul I didn't like it, as there is alot of focus on skincare (and Olive Young is far better about it and affordable) and a lack of make up brands that are not luxury make up brands. Therefore there aren't alot of criterias that would make Sephora standing out on the Korean market.
Sephora is basically trying to compete with brands that have the reputation in korea as the top of the top not only that I think koreans are aware that their cosmetic industry is much better than that of other countries so perhaps they are not so excited to see us cosmetics
