AmorePacific has expanded into the Middle East travel retail market with the opening of a Laneige counter at Dubai International Airport in late March.
The Korean cosmetics powerhouse, with the help of premium brand specialists Jonathan Holland & Associates (JH&A), has plans for further expansion in the region “in the years to come”, Amore Pacific International Travel Retail Division Vice President Joe Park told The Moodie Report.
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AmorePacific has started opening Mamonde counters in China |
Amore Pacific’s travel retail business – both domestic and international – has been performing strongly in recent years.
“For the domestic duty free side [contributed by South Korean airport and downtown stores], we achieved +36% sales growth last year, which is higher than the other competing brands. As for the international duty free side, we achieved +56% sales growth last year,” Park revealed, adding that the company has been recording double-digit sales growth annually. “The Sulwhasoo brand takes the first place in terms of market share.”
In its FY2012 annual report, AmorePacific Corporation attributed its domestic duty free sales growth to a continued inflow of foreign travellers and duty free exclusive product launches. The launch of cosmetics brand Mamonde and an expansion of counter space thanks to strengthened bargaining power have also been strong factors in the full-year performance.
Its international duty free business is also primed for further growth with the recent openings of airport counters across Asia. Laneige was launched in Thailand Don Mueang International Airport in January and Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport in April, while both Laneige and Sulwhasoo were launched in Lotte Duty Free’s first downtown duty free store in Jakarta, Indonesia, last month.
“In addition we are looking forward to open a counter in Guam at the end of this year,” Park revealed, adding that Laneige and Sulwhasoo – the company’s star brands in travel retail – are present in most of the key regions worldwide. AmorePacific is currently running 72 counters in 11 countries; including the airlines, the total number of listings comes up to 102.
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Amore Pacific International Travel Retail Division Vice President Joe Park is anticipating +70% sales growth for the company’s international duty free business in 2013 |
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Laneige and Sulwhasoo counters in downtown Taiwan |
“We have already started opening our Mamonde counters in China. And we are currently preparing to open the Etude and Innisfree counters at the end of this year. For next year, we are considering launching our Hera and Iope brands as well,” Park said.
JH&A Managing Director Jonathan Holland commented: “There are three main reasons for this very healthy growth across the Asian duty free region for us at the moment – firstly, the productivity of each existing counter is growing significantly in every location due to stronger travel retail sets that AmorePacific are creating as well as providing some excellent product innovation.
“Secondly, we are continuing to open more counters in more airports and downtown duty free stores in the region and beyond at this time and they are all performing very well indeed.
“Finally, similar to all other brands, we are benefiting from the amazing Mainland Chinese hunger for skincare brands they like when they travel.”
For 2013, AmorePacific is targeting over +30% sales growth for its domestic duty free business, he underlined. “Our competing brands show single digit or negative sales growth”¦ we will try to maintain our first place position.”
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Laneige and Sulwhasoo within Lotte Duty Free in downtown Jakarta, Indonesia |
Aiming high for its international duty free business, Park is anticipating +70% sales growth for 2013. Holland added: “We are planning and forecasting for this exceptional growth to continue in the International duty free arena in the short to medium term as the main AmorePacific brands are currently making serious headway in the Asia Pacific domestic markets. Also, with more promotional and sales support in both existing and new duty free points of sale, we anticipate strong results for the remainder of 2013 and well into 2014.”
To support this growth target, AmorePacific will return to the TFWA World Exhibition in Cannes later this year, following its debut last October. Park said the company is considering exhibiting its other brands besides Laneige and Sulwhasoo.
Holland added that the priority was to become more and more visible in the international markets and to demonstrate the potential of the AmorePacific brands to more global duty free/travel retail operators. “[With this aim], we are very keen and ambitious to broaden our horizons with these amazing brands,” he said.
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