Healthcare corporations Bodyfriend and Ceragem have identified small appliances and the U.S. market as their second growth engine. They aim to secure younger customers with small appliances and are turning their eyes to the U.S. market, having faced growth limitations in Korea. However, there are concerns that the U.S. tariff policy could be an obstacle to business expansion.
According to the industry on the 17th, Bodyfriend will launch its small appliance business in earnest this year through its subsidiary Everyal. Established in 2019, Everyal was not known for a remarkable sales structure but will now handle the sale of small appliances such as neck and shoulder massagers and massage cushions.
A Bodyfriend official said, "Small appliances are priced at a level that young customers in their 30s can relatively easily access," adding that it is "a strategy to secure future customers for massage chairs and expand the business portfolio."
Ceragem also expanded its business territory with beauty devices such as the Celunic Medispa Pro and the Hair Miracle Hair Loss Care Set last year. It has also created a membership that allows users to experience products within 30 days for 50,000 won per month at wellness cafes nationwide.
According to Ceragem, the number of experience participants using the membership increased by about 30% in the second quarter compared to the first quarter of this year. The skin care and hair loss markets are gradually growing, with increasing demand centered around younger consumers, and the trend of more customers purchasing products is also on the rise.
Bodyfriend, Ceragem, and others who have expanded their scale centered around massage chairs are striving to find new breakthroughs as the growth of the domestic market has become clearly limited.
Bodyfriend's revenue showed a downward trend, recording 591.3 billion won in 2021, 543.7 billion won in 2022, and 419.7 billion won in 2023. While revenue bounced back to 436.9 billion won last year with an operating profit of 22.5 billion won, it is in need of additional growth engines.
Ceragem is also seeing a decline in revenue, from 750.2 billion won in 2022 to 584.7 billion won in 2023, and a projected 546.0 billion won in 2024.
In Korea, they are securing future customers with small appliances while also broadening their business stage to the U.S. market. Corporations like Bodyfriend and Ceragem, which are achieving decent results in the Chinese market, are now turning their eyes to the U.S.
They concluded that there is demand for massage chairs that can be used easily, as there is a resistance to massages that involve another person's hands, like in Tongyang, where markets for therapeutic sports massages or physical therapy-based massages are forming. With high income levels and relatively spacious living environments, the burden for installing devices is low.
Bodyfriend operates six directly managed stores in California, U.S. It has been striving to increase touchpoints, attending CES for the past nine years. There is also a plan to expand the overseas revenue share to 20% by 2027.
Ceragem also recently discussed strategic cooperation plans with the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea. Last year, Ceragem's overseas revenue was 244.8 billion won, approximately half of which came from China. They are accelerating their market expansion in North America, focusing on their U.S. subsidiary, while seeking market diversification and growth.
The variable is the tariff. U.S. President Donald Trump established a reciprocal tariff of 15% on Korea under conditions that Korea invests $350 billion (approximately 487 trillion won) in the U.S. Healthcare corporations like Bodyfriend and Ceragem are closely monitoring the developments regarding this tariff agreement.
An official from the massage chair industry stated, "As many products are produced in China, we are considering options such as transferring production bases or raising product prices," adding, "For now, we will observe the situation and prepare strategies for penetrating the U.S. market once concrete details emerge, such as whether export items are subject to tariff negotiations."