A 40 billion won 'K-Beauty Fund' aimed at investing in domestic beauty brands and tech startups was launched on the 10th.
The Ministry of SMEs and Startups held the 'K-Beauty Fund Launch Ceremony' at the Westin Chosun Hotel in Seoul, attended by over 400 beauty small and medium-sized enterprises and venture companies. Notable attendees included CEO Choi Hyun-kyu of Kolmar Korea and Vice President Shin Yoon-seo of COSMAX.
The 'K-Beauty Fund' is a beauty-focused venture fund created through public-private collaboration. It primarily invests in the entire cosmetics industry value chain, including K-Beauty brands and beauty tech startups. It was established with a total of 40 billion won contributed by COSMAX, Kolmar Korea, and the Korean Venture Fund.
Previously, the government announced the creation of the public-private 'K-Beauty Fund' as a major policy initiative aimed at helping the cosmetics sector, which is the top export item for small and medium-sized enterprises, to leap to a globally competitive level through the 'K-Beauty SME and Venture Companies Global Competitiveness Enhancement Plan' in July.
On that day, alongside the 'K-Beauty Fund Launch Ceremony', a 'Global Insight Conference' was also held. At the conference, industry experts from Olive Young, Kolmar Korea, and Hwahae discussed ways to enhance the global competitiveness of K-Beauty. A session titled 'K-Beauty Export Guide' was also held to discuss tariff countermeasures in response to the recent mutual tariff imposition measures by the U.S.
Minister Oh Youngju noted, "To activate the global market entry of K-Beauty SMEs, we will promote various policies demanded by the field, including the establishment of the K-Beauty Fund, the expansion of public-private collaboration support programs, the introduction of the K-Beauty Loan that supports production funds, and support for hosting international exhibitions and expanding K-Beauty duty-free shop entries."