In K-Cosme 2011, it was definitely the year of Stem Cells, Fermentation and Snails. Hope In A Blog saw the release of snail creams almost every 2 weeks, products with EGF which are often combined together with Snail Creams or in Herbal Medicine, and this year also saw the release of many fermentation lines from different companies ( The Saem Chaga, Holika Holika’s Chal, etc.. )
The Chinese Medicine Cosmetics sector also saw steady growth in 2011 – with the rapid expansion of Korean based oriental herbal brands in Asia such as Sulwhasoo in China and Japan, and the expansion of LG Brands such as OHUI & Whoo in Taiwan. The best seller in this category this year ( and every single year ) is …. none other than…
viola.. Sulwhasoo First Care Serum. It is the best-selling chinese medicine based serum every single year since 1997. Following behind is Danahan RG II Premium EX Deep Wrinkle Line Cream ( which is impressive as it is the only cream that was released this year but made it into the best-seller list on the same year itself ), sharing the spot together with The History Of Whoo Ja Saeng Bichup Essence.
Next is Sooryehan Hyo Essence , a fermentation line with herbal medicine – and also Sulwhasoo’s other best seller : Sulwhasoo Concentrated Ginseng Cream. Other hit products are : Hanyul Gogyeol Jineak Essence ( which was LG’s best selling product last year ), Sulwhasoo Hydro Aid Cream, History Of Whoo Gongjinhyang Cream, and also the newly introduced chinese medicine brand by Coway called Allvit ( Re:nK is also under them ) in which the cream and heating massage mask were very popular this year.
Other hit products from Amore Pacific this year are the Etude House Bee Happy products, Innisfree Jeju Volcanic Pore line, Innisfree Melting Mineral Foundation, Innisfree Eco-Science Spot Wrinkle Essence the infamous Etude House Moistfull Collagen Cream, the forever popular IOPE TX Retinol , Laneige Water Bank Essence. Amore Pacific studied more than 100 types of water in order to create the perfect mineral water to keep the skin moist. The Mineral Water in the Laneige Water Bank series regenerates the skin and fills the cells with ample moisture which can last for 24 hours.
LG’s Isa Knox X2D2 line especially the Isa Knox X2d2 Original Recovery Serum was a huge hit this year too. Isa Knox X2D2 line will include potent products that actively solve a variety of skin problems related to women’s aging such as wrinkles, dark circles, and extreme dryness. Containing Nanomedi-A, a unique functional wrinkle-care substance patented by LG, Isa Knox X2D2 creates sufficient skin collagen to reconstitute the three-dimensional structure of skin layers and fill in wrinkles. In addition, “3D PEP (Peptide),”a substance discovered in collaboration with French cosmetics firm Sederma, adds dimension to the inner structures of the skin to effectively erase wrinkles, leaving the skin more velvety and resilient.
One of K-Cosme’s best sellers this year is the Skinfood Royal Honey Hydro line. After one week of it’s release in September, it became best-sellers in major retail stores and was completely sold out. The entire line has been such a huge success for Skin Food that the line has expanded into more than 22 products now including 2 different serums, 2 different creams, ampoules, makeup, mist etc. The line uses Royal Black Honey and Royal Jelly extracts which deeply nourishes the skin and is full of nutrients. Royal Black Honey is natural raw black honey from South Asian forests, one of the UNESCO World Heritage sites.
TonyMoly’s hit product this year without much competition is the TonyMoly Floria Whitening Capsule Essence which won the No.1 Whitening Serum in Allure Magazine’s Best Of Beauty Awards 2011, beating high end brands like Dior, Estee Lauder etc. Other hit products include the Tony Moly Backstage Gel Eyeliner, Tony Moly Floria Nutra Energy Miracle Serum.
Nature Republic’s hit product and best seller this year is also the infamous Aqua Max Cream which came in 2 versions (
dry, combination, oily ) and won Allure Magazine’s Best Of Beauty Awards 2011 in the Best Hydrating Cream category. It uses deep sea water and marine plant extracts to keep skin moist all day. Since it’s release in April, it has recorded sales of almost 800,000 in Korea – a huge number for such a small market !
The Saem’s best sellers this year was the The Saem Black Pearl O2 Bubble Mask which has generated a hit record sales of almost 2 Billion Wons since it’s launch in March. Other best-sellers are The Saem Chaga Serum , a fermentation line using Chaga mushrooms which was introduced 2 months back, and The Saem Skin Fit Silky Finish BB Cream 스킨 핏 실크 피니쉬 BB크림 which saw a 3-fold increase in sales since last year.
Hanbul It’s Skin best-seller is without any competition their Prestige d’Escargot line and the popularity of this line will be here to stay for the next few years without fail especially with the expansion of K-pop worldwide and the endorsement of Nickhun from 2PM. Hanbul’s other bestseller includes the ICS Snail Care System ICS 스네일 스킨케어 시스템 , another snail line but in a different brand. ( Note than Hanbul also produces the brand Escada which also has a snail line! ).
Other HIT and Best-Sellers of 2011 :
- A.C Care Bee Venom Water Essence – no surprise here. A.C Care is now a best-seller in Japan too!
- Lohasys Revitilizing Snail Cream 리바이탈라이징 크림 – hit product in Japan too!
- Chosungah Raw Black Bubble Cleanser
- Mizon Snail Cream
- Mizon Aqua Bank Water Max Aqua Gel Cream
