S. Korea Top Spender on Men's Skincare Products

No nation comes close to S. Korea in spending on men’s skincare products, according to market researcher Euromonitor International. The nation claimed a whopping 21% of global spending in that segment for 2010 though its population is a mere 0.8% of the world’s.

Last year Koreans spent 284.6 million euros ($180 million) on toners, lotions and other men’s skincare products for a 21% share of global sales of $840 million last year, up from from $450 million in 2006. The segment is projected to hit $1 trillion this year.

The booming demand is apparent in the number of men’s grooming shops that have been opening. Last March domestic cosmetics brand Amore Pacific opened a shop for skin and hair care for men in the vicinity of Hongik University. Sales have jumped over 20 percent, with a thousand men visiting on an average weekend.

A men’s spa launched at the Riverside Hotel in Seoul’s upscale Gangnam district at the end of August has already become a hit by offering customers health checkups and a variety of massage options.

Much of the growth in demand for male grooming and pampering is coming from men in their 40s and 50s. They are now replacing younger counterparts in their 20s and 30s as the big spenders as they seek to adopt regimen and lifestyles geared toward making them look and feel a decade or two younger.

Remarkably, the trend has already powered the men’s fashion segment past the women’s.

In 2005 men’s clothing sales were $4.2 billion compared with $5.5 billion for the women’s segment. In 2010 the men’s segment soared to $6.7 billion, passing the $6.6 billion spent on fashion by women. The biggest gains were enjoyed by purveyors of premium suits and designer brand watches.

European brands have taken notice and have furiously expanded their Korea outlets. Men’s Swiss watchmaker IWC saw Korea sales jump from $910,000 in 2006 to $46 mil. last year.