This article was displayed on the ChosunBiz MoneyMove (MM) site at 2:46 p.m. on Jun. 19, 2026.
Private equity fund (PEF) manager Anchor Equity Partners (Anchor PE) has begun laying the groundwork to resume the sale of the high-functionality cosmetics brand "Dermafirm." In addition to reorganizing the equity structure around Anchor PE, it is understood to have recently appointed a new chief financial officer (CFO) who previously worked at L'Oréal.
According to the investment bank (IB) industry on the 19th, Anchor PE recently appointed Lee Han-gu, former WONTECH CFO, as Dermafirm's finance chief. Lee is a finance and management expert who has worked at global beauty corporations L'Oréal and P&G and at ZEISS, and handled the Style Nanda acquisition transaction while at L'Oréal.
A person in the cosmetics industry said, "Lee has experience across various sectors, including general consumer goods and medical devices, with a track record spanning finance and overall management," adding, "Anchor PE is known to have made considerable efforts over a long period to recruit Lee with the aim of improving Dermafirm's performance and pushing for a sale."
Dermafirm is the operator of the high-functionality derma cosmetics brand Dermafirm, sold at hospitals such as dermatology clinics, and it started in 2002. Former founder-CEO Cha Hoon, who had worked as the Korea branch head for Canadian derma cosmetics specialist corporation Clayton Shagal, directly acquired the Korea branch and launched the business as an independent corporation.
Anchor PE secured 15% equity in the company in 2019 to become the second-largest shareholder, then moved to a capital increase in 2020 to become the largest shareholder. The total amount invested is known to be around 100 billion won. About four years after the initial investment, on 2023 it attempted a sale once, but it fell through due to weak performance.
The analysis is that Anchor PE has begun preparing to resume recovering its investment nearly three years after the failed sale. In particular, Anchor PE carried out a paid-in capital increase of about 59.4 billion won last year, raising Dermafirm's equity stake from 68.7% to 84.27%. By increasing the controlling shareholder's equity, it effectively shifted to a single, whole-company sale structure.
The key is performance. Dermafirm, which recorded 38.7 billion won in revenue and 20.1 billion won in operating profit on a consolidation basis in 2019, saw revenue climb to 80.5 billion won in 2021, but operating profit fell to 13.5 billion won. Last year, it posted 58.8 billion won in revenue and a 18.3 billion won operating loss. Both revenue and profit declined together.
Anchor PE plans to return to the black this year, based on personnel renewal including bringing in Lee as CFO. Thanks to last year's paid-in capital increase, the liability ratio fell from 20.58% at the end of 2024 to 14.6% at the end of last year, and it also cleaned up risks by fully impairing about 2.2 billion won in goodwill from the China business unit.
A person in the IB industry said, "Anchor PE was once cited as the most watched PEF manager in Korea thanks to exits from GeoYoung and A TWOSOME PLACE, but it has recently faced a rough patch," adding, "With unexited portfolios such as Etoos Education piling up, it is in a position where it needs to proceed with at least the Dermafirm exit."