SHANGHAI, Jan 18 — For years, K-beauty set the pace for young Asian consumers — from cushion compacts to the promise of glass skin. Xie Roumei followed that script, too. The 28-year-old accountant from China’s Fujian province started with Korean cosmetics in high school and stuck with them into adulthood. But now, she says, the distinction feels thinner.
“The texture and colour payoff feel quite similar,” she told The Korea Times. “I don’t think there’s a huge difference anymore.”
That shift in perception mirrors a broader change in the global beauty landscape. South Korea remains a powerhouse — the world’s second-largest cosmetics exporter after France — but China’s homegrown brands are rapidly closing in, buoyed by vast domestic demand and a more confident push overseas.
According to The Korea Times, China’s cosmetics exports hit US$3.99 billion (RM16.2 billion) in the first 11 months of 2025, up 8.7 per cent year on year. Korea still leads at US$10.3 billion, yet the gap is narrowing as China’s imports fall — a sign local brands are winning share at home.
“Chinese beauty brands may arguably already exceed K-beauty in absolute value and consumer reach,” said Chloe Zhu of Euromonitor International, pointing to the scale of local demand as a decisive edge.
From guochao to global ambition
China’s beauty boom first took shape through guochao, a patriotic consumption wave that elevated domestic aesthetics and heritage. By 2024, local brands commanded more than half of the domestic market, squeezing foreign labels. Geopolitics compounded the shift: after the 2016 THAAD deployment, Korean cultural exports faced unofficial barriers in China, sharply reducing Korea’s once-dominant share.
Now comes phase two. As competition tightens at home, Chinese companies are expanding outward. Ushopal’s acquisition of French skincare house Payot, prestige label Mao Geping’s overseas plans, and Flower Knows opening a Seoul pop-up all signal a new confidence.
Analysts say rising trust is helping Chinese brands move beyond price. “Only a handful of brands can realistically compete with the speed and scale at which local Chinese brands are investing,” a China-based executive at a Korean cosmetics firm told The Korea Times.
Colour leads, skin care lags
The rivalry is not yet head-to-head. Korea still dominates skin care, built on years of clinical credibility. Chinese brands have broken through faster in colour cosmetics — trend-driven, experimental and more forgiving.
“I could try new styles at relatively low prices,” said Seoul makeup artist Hong Ju-mi, though she remains cautious about overseas skin care.
That hesitation persists for brands like Perfect Diary and Florasis. “What truly sets Korean skin care apart is its long-term presence in the global market over 15 years of accumulated trust,” said Vincentia Vania Natasha, who works in overseas sales at a Korean beauty company.
Culture as catalyst
If K-beauty rode K-pop and K-dramas, Chinese brands are testing their own cultural engines. On Douyin and TikTok, ornate packaging and doll-like makeup rooted in Chinese aesthetics travel fast — especially in South-east Asia, where Chinese brands posted triple-digit growth between 2019 and 2024, according to Euromonitor data cited by The Korea Times.
French student Laura Pageault discovered Chinese cosmetics while travelling in the region and has since built an entire routine around them. “So far I’ve been quite satisfied,” she said, though she is still watching for long-term results.
To truly rival K-beauty’s global halo, economists argue China needs a cultural carrier of similar reach. Micro-dramas could be one answer. “If actresses in popular dramas wear Chinese makeup, it could benefit those Chinese brands commercially,” said Xu Tianchen of the Economist Intelligence Unit.
For now, the balance of power is shifting. The glass-skin era may not be over — but it no longer tells the whole story.
