d'Alba Global's d'Alba and APR's Medicube brands are sustaining momentum in the global market on the back of hit products. As a result, the small and midsize manufacturing partners that produce these items are also expanding in tandem.
B&B Korea, which is dedicated to d'Alba's mist products, more than tripled its revenue in two years, and Ncos and Nodinary, which produce Medicube's pore pads, sheet masks, and collagen-based products, also more than doubled their revenue. Beyond simple supply relationships, their presence is growing as this ties in with Hitejinro's business diversification and APR's strategic equity investments.
On the 13th, the Financial Supervisory Service's Data Analysis, Retrieval and Transfer System (DART) showed that B&B Korea posted 141.2 billion won in revenue and 26.2 billion won in operating profit last year. Those figures were up 75.8% and 57.8%, respectively, from a year earlier. Compared with 2023, revenue jumped 219.5%, more than tripling in two years.
B&B Korea is a key partner exclusively producing d'Alba Global's mist lineup. d'Alba began drawing global attention in the early 2020s with the success of its flagship product, the White Truffle First Spray Serum. The product gained word-of-mouth among flight attendants for being easy to use frequently even in dry cabin environments, and later became widely known by the nickname "crew mist."
Propelled by this product, d'Alba Global, which has established itself as a powerhouse in mists, still derives about half of its total revenue from mist products. Last year, d'Alba Global's mist lineup recorded 239.1 billion won in revenue, up 43.5% from the previous year.
B&B Korea is also connected to the Hitejinro group. As part of business diversification, in Sept. 2024 the group acquired 81.02% equity in B&B Korea for about 100 billion won through Jinbaek Global, a special-purpose company (SPC) established by its affiliate Seoyoung E&T. Then, in June last year, it purchased all remaining equity for about 28 billion won, making B&B Korea a wholly owned subsidiary.
Seoyoung E&T is owned by the Hitejinro group's owner family. Park Tae-young, president of Hitejinro and the eldest son of Chairman Park Moon-deok, is the largest shareholder with 58.44% equity, and Vice President Park Jae-hong, the second son, holds 21.62%. Chairman Park and his elder brother, Park Moon-hyo, chairman of Hitejinro Industry, also hold 14.69% and 5.16% equity, respectively.
APR's major partners are also continuing sharp performance improvements. Ncos posted 238 billion won in revenue and 21.7 billion won in operating profit last year. Those figures were up 33.2% and 31.5%, respectively, from a year earlier. Compared with 2023, revenue rose 107.3%.
Ncos is the company exclusively producing Medicube's toner pad lineup. Toner pads are skincare products used to wipe the skin with pads saturated with toner. They are gaining popularity among global consumers because they are easy to use and can provide hydration, exfoliation, and texture refinement all at once.
As of the end of last year, Medicube's toner pad lineup surpassed a cumulative 20 million units sold at home and abroad. After exceeding 10 million units in March last year, another 10 million units were sold in about nine months. In particular, the Zero Pore Pad, which posted the highest sales among them, ranked No. 1 in sales across the entire beauty category during Amazon's Black Friday period last year and has maintained the No. 1 spot in Amazon's Toner & Astringent category for more than a year.
Nodinary, a key partner producing Medicube's collagen and PDRN product lines, also showed steep growth. Nodinary posted 51.1 billion won in revenue and 9 billion won in operating profit last year. Those figures were up 46.4% and 60.7%, respectively, from a year earlier. Compared with 2023, the revenue growth rate reached 134.4%.
Founded in 2020, Nodinary was a young cosmetics manufacturer whose first-year revenue was about 2 billion won. In Aug. 2021, APR acquired 16.77% equity in Nodinary for about 1 billion won, becoming the second-largest shareholder.
Since then, Nodinary has grown rapidly by contract-manufacturing products for various brands centered on Medicube. In Dec. 2024, APR sold part of its Nodinary equity, reaping about a 600% return three years after its investment, and it remains the third-largest shareholder with 3.7% equity, continuing a strategic partnership.