The South Korean beauty conglomerate announced that Aestura made its first foray into South East Asia through Shopee Vietnam on January 22.
It added that it would follow up its Vietnam debut by launching with local retail beauty chain Beauty Box in all its 17 doors.
According to Beauty Box, it owns stores across three major Vietnamese cities: Ho Chi Minh, Hanoi, and Hai Phong.
The brand will launch a total of 16 products from three lines: Atobarrier 365, A-Cica 365, Theracne 365, and Derma UV 365.
Next, the company will introduce the brand in Thailand as part of plans to “raise its status as a global brand,” said the firm.
According to the firm, the brand is scheduled to be launch in Thailand in the first half of this year.
Laying the groundwork in Vietnam
The brand’s official debut in Vietnam was preceded by its pre-marketing activities starting June 2023.
During this time, the brand determined that the A-Cica 365 Blemish Calming Serum was the most favoured by Vietnamese beauty consumers.
Other products in the Aestura lineup resonated with Vietnamese consumers included Atobarrier 365 Cream, Derma UV365 Red Calming Tone-Up Sunscreen, and Theracne 365 Clear Deep Cleansing Foam.
According to South Korea’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS), Vietnam accounts for the lion’s share of Korea’s cosmetic exports to SEA.
In terms of Korea’s total cosmetics export volume, Vietnam ranks as the fifth largest export market and is continuing to grow.
From 2021 to 2022, exports of Korean cosmetics to Vietnam increased by 23.4%.
CosmeticsDesign-Asia previously reported that the MFDS said that it was working with the Drug Administration of Vietnam (DAV), a regulatory authority under the Vietnam’s Ministry of Health (MOH), to streamline procedures in order to boost cosmetic exports to the country.
Nurturing success
Aestura’s expansion into SEA follows its entry into Japan.
The brand was first launched on e-commerce platform Qoo10 in November 2021 and later entered Amazon and Rakuten in May 2022.
Last September, it expanded to physical retail in partnership with local beauty chain @cosme.
According to Amorepacific, Aestura’s expansion to Japan has been “a successful entry”.
Aestura was developed to provide skin care solutions for people with sensitive skin.
Domestically, it is one of the most well-known derma beauty brands and has consistently topped Olive Young’s rankings in the derma beauty category.
As of 2023, it has received the Brand of the Year Award in the derma beauty category for eight consecutive years. The awards are a national event hosted by the Korean Customer Council.
In January, the brand announced that its flagship product, Atobarrier 365 cream, had undergone its first renewal since its debut.
This cream was recently relaunched with a formula enhanced with long-chain ceramides and ceramide linkers. According to the firm, it results in a denser and stronger ceramide structure to better support those with sensitive skin.
Atobarrier 365 cream is a best seller with cumulative single sales exceeding three million units in the last five years.