Pleasure to meet you. I'm Samuel Seo. I've been with COSRX for about two years now. Before that, I spent many years at Amorepacific, serving as a country head and expat in markets such as Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, and Malaysia, which gave me extensive firsthand experience in international business. Drawing on that background, I currently oversee all business operations and strategy at COSRX.

COSRX is a first-generation indie beauty brand founded in 2013, one that gained international recognition before it was even widely known at home in Korea. The name is a blend of 'Cosmetic' and 'RX' (short for prescription), and, true to its name, COSRX is a derma brand built on honest, high-efficacy formulations centered on active ingredients. After capturing the North American market with breakthrough products like its Snail Mucin cream, the brand has maintained a consistently strong presence across global markets.

The competitiveness of K-beauty today, as I see it, comes from a combination of factors: the bold investment and speed unique to indie brands, the solid infrastructure that supports them, the reach and influence of K-culture, and unbeatable value for money. The infrastructure is so well developed, from ODM and OEM manufacturers to packaging suppliers, that even indie brands can bring high-quality products to market at remarkable speed. And it doesn't stop there. The number of distributors carrying these products to markets around the world has exploded, and global retailers have emerged to meet that demand. As the price barrier lowers, more people try the products, and that growing user base feeds back into video platforms where content goes viral, creating a virtuous cycle that keeps building on itself. I think K-beauty has ridden the short-form content trend better than anyone. Short-form platforms like TikTok have an almost uncanny ability to capture the nuanced textures and expressive qualities that make Korean cosmetics so distinctive. With video platforms serving as the booster that ties all of this infrastructure together, K-beauty has developed a competitive edge entirely its own.

One of our products, the 'Snail Mucin' cream, has an incredibly stretchy texture. Apply it to your palm, pull your hands apart, and it literally stretches like melted cheese. When that went viral on TikTok, the response was explosive. It's visually captivating, and as reviews piled up from people who tried it and actually felt the results, the word started to spread. Our products are also ingredient-focused, starting with their very names: Vitamin C, Retinol, Peptide. Customers can tell at a glance what a product does just by reading the name. On top of that, we have proprietary formulation technology that delivers high concentrations of active ingredients while minimizing irritation. That combination of intuitively clear naming and high-efficacy products that truly live up to those names is the key to our sustained growth.

When you really immerse yourself in how local customers live, you come across some genuinely fascinating discoveries. Two examples come to mind in particular. The first is how physical differences drive product preferences. If you look closely, Asian skin tends to have finer, thinner facial vellus hair, while Western skin tends to have denser, coarser hair. That's why the sheet masks we all use fit perfectly to Asian skin, while they tend to lift and not adhere as well to Western skin. Because of this difference, the European market has seen growing enthusiasm for hydrogel masks, which provide much stronger adhesion and a more substantial feel than sheet masks. The formula that turns from opaque to clear as it absorbs is especially popular because that visual transformation gives people an intuitive sense of 'Ah, the ingredients have fully absorbed into my skin,' and they love it. It's a perfect convergence of formulation tailored to physical characteristics and a compelling visual payoff. The second example involves the distinct beauty habits shaped by cultural context. Vietnam, where I was based, is the perfect illustration. Motorcycles are a way of life there. Even under blazing sun with temperatures above 30 degrees, people bundle up from head to toe to keep the sun out: hoodies, sunglasses, face masks, long sleeves, long pants, gloves, even socks. Yet they're still inevitably exposed to exhaust fumes and harsh environmental stressors, which is why a very large proportion of Vietnamese consumers think of themselves as having 'sensitive skin.' That has made it fertile ground for well-known European derma brands, which have a strong foothold there. COSRX is also targeting that space by capitalizing on the trust consumers place in derma cosmetics and leading with gentle, high-efficacy formulations.

Honestly, it gave me goosebumps. It was my first time attending, and people who go every year said the number of K-beauty booths had grown noticeably compared to last year. On the ground, it was no exaggeration to say that K-beauty was the centerpiece of the entire show. There were as many as six dedicated halls, and even Europe's major distributors were putting K-beauty front and center.

Being there, I could see everything that makes up the vast K-beauty ecosystem. Everything falls under the K-beauty umbrella: not just the brands, but also ODM manufacturers, vendors, and even booth agencies. Witnessing the sheer scale and dynamism filled me with excitement about where K-beauty is headed, but it also gave me a lot to think about. Inside that exhibition hall, all information was being shared openly, and I came to realize, viscerally, that exclusive vendors and proprietary information we could call our own simply no longer exist. That drove home exactly what it means to live in a hyper-networked era. In a world where the weapons of technology and information are now equal for everyone, I found myself asking: what kind of brand do we need to be to become the first name that comes to mind? K-beauty expanding with no ceiling in sight is clearly a tremendous opportunity, but I came home with a real challenge weighing on me: in a world where differentiation is increasingly hard to achieve, we need to develop strengths that are uniquely our own.

Ultimately, I think the emotional dimension decides the outcome — winning people's hearts. The power that makes customers and partners think of us first, out of all the options available to them, comes from emotional connection, doesn't it? To survive, we need to sharpen our human touch, our capacity for genuine human warmth. The more AI dominates and information overflows, the more important it becomes, paradoxically, to lead with narratives that feel authentically human. We need to keep delivering content that offers customers real, practical value, and we need to cultivate genuine human bonds with our partners, including vendors and retailers, that go well beyond a contractual relationship. When a brand's authentic story is firmly embedded in its network, extending well beyond product specs, that is when COSRX develops a sustainable strength that no one can easily replicate. The human touch is just as essential within our own organization as it is to the brand itself.

Yes. The longer I lead this organization, the more convinced I am that it always comes down to people. The systems and processes are already excellent. The variable is people, and the way people communicate with one another. Just as light gathered under a magnifying glass eventually crosses the ignition point, when the aspirations of our team members align in a single direction, the organization becomes capable of explosive execution. Systems are only the foundation. What actually sets them on fire is the human spirit.
Even with the best strategy and the best products, if your people aren't pulling together as one team to bring those products to market and drive sales, strong results are hard to come by. That's why I place a great deal of importance on the 'People First' principle. I've seen many times how the right chemistry makes the seemingly impossible possible, and how the wrong chemistry can derail something that should have worked. So I put everything I have into building a one-team culture. Strong internal communication and collaboration are a given, but I also encourage our people to bring genuine sincerity to every collaboration with external buyers and platform partners.

As these two worlds came together, I've held fast to three core missions. The first is to preserve the intangible qualities that are uniquely COSRX intact. What struck me most when I joined was the speed of decision-making. People debate fiercely, regardless of rank, and land on a direction. It caught me off guard at first, but I've come to deeply respect and embrace that flexible, fast-moving culture. Protecting what makes COSRX COSRX — that is my first mission. The second is creating synergy through a healthy crossover. Indie and legacy each have their own clear strengths and weaknesses. Working at COSRX, I find myself thinking, 'This is an area where Amorepacific's structured systems and know-how would make such a difference.' And equally, there are things about COSRX that I believe Amorepacific could learn from. My goal is to keep the lines of communication open, bring those voices from the front lines to the table, and fill in each other's gaps. And the third is the most important of all. I want to make this M&A a genuinely meaningful success story. For the countless K-beauty indie brands out there right now dreaming of growth, I hope to instill the belief that partnering with Amorepacific means you, too, can make that leap to the next level.

Amorepacific's greatest strength, in my view, lies in its culture of mutual respect, where people support one another and grow together. It is a company that spares no effort in offering support and opportunities to those who bring genuine drive and passion. I'm one of the people who benefited from exactly that. When team members receive trust and backing from the company, they naturally develop a sense of gratitude and loyalty that feeds back into even greater contribution. Ultimately, I believe the foundation that enables both individuals and the organization to grow together begins with genuine respect for one another. I'm convinced that when Amorepacific's mature culture of mutual respect is layered onto the distinctive strengths COSRX brings as an indie brand, the resulting synergy will be extraordinary.

Last year, there were moments at work that sent a real thrill through me. The two years I've spent at COSRX have been an experience of an entirely different ecosystem — a solid turning point for me. Here, every single person on the team feels like a teacher, regardless of their rank. I come to work with the mindset of a new hire, genuinely eager to learn. And I genuinely mean it: I look forward to coming in these days. Every morning, I find myself wondering what new thing I'll discover today.

An open mind, above all else. Even if your focus is skincare, you need to be able to read trends across the entire industry: makeup, hair, body, all of it. I still monitor TikTok and Instagram regularly, and I check cross-border e-commerce platforms constantly. If you keep practicing that habit of watching which brands are being searched in which markets and which ones are being pushed, I think the compounding effect over ten years will set you apart from your peers in ways that are hard to overstate.

I find myself in complete agreement with BTS's 'Love Yourself' message. Loving yourself as you are, without comparing yourself to others, and letting that care for yourself show on the outside: isn't that what New Beauty really is?

Striving without results would just be exhausting, but checking off goals one by one actually makes the work enjoyable. Work itself isn't a source of stress for me, but I do make a point of walking often to clear my head. You have to empty before you can fill back up, so I've made it a practice to walk at least 10,000 steps a day to clear my mind. Whenever an idea surfaces along the way, I jot down a keyword to come back to.
As a member of a beauty company, I also put in real effort to take care of my skin. My complexion today is the cumulative result of consistently using Amorepacific products for 18 years, and I feel like adding COSRX into my routine has helped me maintain it well.

My absolute favorite among COSRX products is the 'Vitamin C 23 Serum,' and I truly wish everyone would try it. It's pure vitamin C and yet remarkably gentle, and when you apply it and it absorbs, there's this wonderful firmness you can feel in your skin. My routine starts with a mist after cleansing, then the 'Peptide Boosting Serum' in place of a toner, followed by the 'Vitamin C 23 Serum' and a moisturizer to finish. About once a week, I also use the 'Retinol 0.1 Cream,' focusing on areas prone to fine lines. I can feel my skin texture improving, and I'm really happy with the results.

I hope that one day COSRX will be held up as the textbook example of Amorepacific's most successful M&A. More than a brand that rides a trend and fades, I want us to become a timeless brand — one that delivers enduring value regardless of the era. No matter which wave of K-beauty comes next, we will be the brand that global consumers think of first, and the brand that sets the direction for all the others."

"Amorepacific challenges and delivers by persisting until it works."
Everyone at COSRX, myself included, works with the urgency of people who know there is no tomorrow. As an indie brand, you have to prove yourself through results, day after day. If something isn't working, you keep going until it does. It's an environment where we ask ourselves, every single day, whether we've grown even a little more than we did yesterday.