Suhyeon Baek In preparing for the Japan launch, I built our overall market-entry strategy based on research into the market and our customers. My role involved analyzing the Japanese beauty market to set our channel strategy and managing the launch schedule and budget. I also coordinated the project as a whole, working with multiple related departments on everything from planning brand experience activities to product preparation, supply and shipping, and customs clearance.

Yonghwan Kim I was responsible for designing the overall structure of the pop-up space and the flow of the customer experience. Many teams had messages they wanted to convey, and rather than simply listing them all, I focused on organizing them into a single experience customers could naturally follow, then bringing that to life through the space and the VMD.

Eunhye Cho I planned the content for every touchpoint where customers experience the brand firsthand. With a particular focus on how Japanese customers would feel about and remember Sulwhasoo, I worked with Younghwa Jung to design the promoter training program, customer-facing scripts, and brand experience content.

Euiju Song I was in charge of content and owned-media strategy for the Japan market entry. I planned and executed the overall brand communications that created touchpoints with Japanese consumers, from developing brand content to running our social media channels and collaborating with KOLs.

Suhyeon Baek Japan is a critically important strategic market within the global premium beauty industry. We had focused on major markets such as the U.S. and China, but as interest in K-culture has grown and consumer interest in Sulwhasoo has risen along with it, we determined that now was the right time to enter the Japanese market.

Eunhye Cho Above all, Japanese customers hold beauty to a high standard and look at brands with a very discerning eye. So rather than simply transplanting the approach that worked in Korea, we focused on how Japanese customers could come to understand and experience Sulwhasoo on their own terms.

Euiju Song A wide range of K-beauty brands had already entered the Japanese market. Rather than leading with the message that we're "Korea's leading luxury brand," we focused on letting people naturally experience what kind of brand Sulwhasoo is and what research and philosophy stand behind it.

Euiju Song We spent more time thinking about what not to say than what to say. Rather than repeating words such as "tradition" or "herbal medicine," we wanted to introduce Sulwhasoo as a holistic longevity beauty brand built on 60 years of ginseng research.

Suhyeon Baek Exactly. Through Sulwhasoo's beauty philosophy of strengthening the skin's own innate power, we wanted to convey not simple anti-aging, but "beauty that doesn't lose to time."

Eunhye Cho What that means is that we're not a brand that only manages visible skin concerns, but one that places real importance on the skin's fundamental health and balance. We hoped Japanese customers would come to understand Sulwhasoo not just as another Korean cosmetics brand, but as one that speaks to healthy, sustainable beauty.

Suhyeon Baek I'd say it's authenticity. Sulwhasoo is a brand that has spent decades thinking deeply about beauty. The more than 60 years of accumulated ginseng research and continuous innovation behind it are directly reflected in the craftsmanship that Japanese customers value so highly.

Yonghwan Kim From a spatial designer's perspective, I think the brand's depth and the sense of trust it carries are its greatest appeal. Sulwhasoo isn't just about the efficacy of a single product; it's a brand that lets you experience its history, philosophy, fragrance, and how it feels on the skin, all together.

Eunhye Cho The way traditional wisdom and modern science come together in harmony is also an essential point of differentiation. I think what makes Sulwhasoo unique is that it doesn't stop at simply talking about its heritage; it keeps developing that heritage into value that's relevant right now.

Suhyeon Baek The key product for this Japan launch was the “First Care Activating Serum.” Since a brand launch is, in effect, the moment customers experience Sulwhasoo for the first time, we concluded that the First Care Activating Serum, the first-step essence used immediately after cleansing, was the product that should represent Sulwhasoo and reach customers first. Pre-launch consumer research also showed strong preference for the serum's fragrance, and that even a three-day trial was enough to raise customers' perceived improvement in their skin, which in turn led to higher satisfaction and a stronger intent to purchase.

Suhyeon Baek @cosme TOKYO is Japan's leading beauty platform and retail channel. We saw it as a space where we could reach a wide range of customers in a short period and get the most vivid read on real customer reactions. We also expected to meet even more customers because the pop-up period overlapped with Golden Week.

Yonghwan Kim We built the space around amber, Sulwhasoo's signature brand color, rooted in the earth. We designed it so that the brand's history, signature products, and fragrance experience wouldn't appear as separate elements but would connect into a single flow. Sulwhasoo is a brand with a lot of stories to tell, and rather than showing customers all of that information at once, it was important to create a sequence that would help them understand the brand naturally. So we designed the spatial sequence to follow the flow of customers meeting the brand, trying the products, and then experiencing the fragrance.

Yonghwan Kim I'd heard that Japanese customers tend to check product information very thoroughly. So we tried to present the brand history, product information, and experience missions in a bit more detail. At the same time, we made sure that even with more information on offer, it wouldn't feel overwhelming by structuring it so customers could absorb it naturally within the flow of the experience.

Suhyeon Baek It took the form of three missions. First, the Brand Heritage Zone introduced Sulwhasoo's 60 years of ginseng research through a scratch-card mission. We then set up a space where customers could try the First Care Activating Serum, Concentrated Ginseng Rejuvenating Cream, and other products directly. Finally, after experiencing the fragrance of the First Care Activating Serum, customers could take part in a slot-machine event. We added an element of fun by reinterpreting an experience format familiar to Japanese customers in Sulwhasoo's own style. We also offered Sulwhasoo's signature Jihambo gift-wrapping service to customers who made a purchase, which received an enthusiastic response.

Yonghwan Kim My biggest source of inspiration was “The House of Sulwhasoo Bukchon,” which you could call the wellspring of Sulwhasoo's design. I thought hard about how to condense the brand's heritage and the depth conveyed by its materials, colors, and spaces into the small footprint of a pop-up. We also referenced many local Japanese pop-up cases, but we made sure never to lose sight of Sulwhasoo's own depth and brand sensibility.

Suhyeon Baek Far more customers visited than we expected. Some even came back the next day to purchase after trying a sample, which gave us real confidence that Sulwhasoo's product strength and brand story could fully resonate with Japanese customers, too.

Euiju Song Interest in the brand was incredibly high. Many people waited in line for the experience, and quite a few who initially stopped by out of curiosity ended up purchasing after hearing the brand's story.

Yonghwan Kim I felt rewarded watching customers move through the space along our intended path as they experienced Sulwhasoo. Seeing people naturally taking photos and documenting their visit at the First Care Activating Zone, which we designed as a photo spot, made it real to me that the space was actually functioning as a brand experience.

Suhyeon Baek Honestly, at the brand level, we'd been preparing for the Japan launch for a long time, but once it was actually confirmed, we had far less time than we expected. Within that window, countless departments had to work simultaneously, from consumer research to product manufacturing, shipping, and on-site supply. Because the schedule was so tight, unexpected issues arose, but we made quick decisions and responded each time. More than anything, the chill I felt the night before the pop-up opened, when the installation was finally finished and I saw the Harajuku @cosme store filled with Sulwhasoo for the first time, is something I still haven’t forgotten.

Euiju Song The day we shot content ahead of the pop-up opening is the most memorable for me. Since the store's VMD changeover occurred after closing hours, our shoot ended up running late into the night. With nowhere good to wait, we passed the time at Yoyogi Park. We spent the whole night shooting, going back and forth between the hotel and the shoot location, but rather than feeling exhausted, I felt, above all, the excitement of documenting Sulwhasoo's new beginning in Japan.

Yonghwan Kim The local Japanese vendors worked so meticulously that installation continued right up until the opening. Even though we'd worked through the entire night before, we still didn't have much time left for product display and VMD setup. In the end, everyone moved as one team, without sticking to their own assigned roles. It reminded me once again that a pop-up is ultimately the product of many people's collaboration.

Eunhye Cho The promoter training sessions are what I remember most. At first, I honestly expected the promoters to be more interested in practical matters such as operating procedures and customer-facing scripts. But unexpectedly, they showed deep, genuine interest in Sulwhasoo's philosophy and ginseng research. The questions never stopped: what the name "Sulwhasoo" means, what the meaning behind the brand color is, and why the ginseng research began in the first place. By the time the training ended, it no longer felt like a simple training session; it felt like a fan meetup where people who loved Sulwhasoo had gathered to share the brand's story. That was the first moment I felt truly confident that Sulwhasoo could be just as loved in Japan.

Suhyeon Baek Each team had different elements they wanted to highlight and different points they considered important, so aligning all of that into a single direction wasn't straightforward. However, because everyone shared the same goal of properly introducing Sulwhasoo to Japanese customers, I believe it ultimately led to a good result.

Euiju Song It was that we talked about the brand before the product. While typical launch content emphasizes product functionality, we focused on conveying Sulwhasoo's heritage and philosophy first. In particular, we unpacked our 60 years of ginseng research and our perspective on Korean beauty through a range of content, planning it so that Japanese consumers would come to understand not "what does this brand sell," but "what philosophy and values does this brand hold."

Euiju Song Since this was Sulwhasoo's very first hello to the Japanese market, we wanted to show the brand's mood and philosophy before its products. We shot on location in Japan ourselves, focusing on capturing the everyday streetscape, the air of the city, and a sense of daily life, rather than landmarks. Even though it was a brand-new account, it racked up far more views than we expected, which gave us confidence that a brand-experience-centered approach could work well.

Euiju Song We invited Japanese KOLs and beauty experts to Korea so they could directly experience The House of Sulwhasoo Bukchon, our lab, and our spa, among other things. Rather than simply introducing products, we designed it so they could experience the brand's values and philosophy firsthand. They then naturally shared that experience on their own channels, which let us build anticipation for the brand well before the pop-up even opened.
In fact, we could see reactions in the influencers' content comments such as "I've been using Sulwhasoo for a long time," "I want to visit The House of Sulwhasoo Bukchon next time I'm in Korea," and "It's not just the products, the brand story is impressive too." It was striking that the brand's heritage and the experience itself, not just a simple product introduction, drew this level of interest and resonance from consumers.

Euiju Song Makiko Takizawa stands out most. It was her first time using Sulwhasoo, and her satisfaction was extremely high, so much so that, beyond the YouTube content we'd originally planned, she voluntarily shared her thoughts on Sulwhasoo on her own personal social media as well. After that, our official Japan account saw an influx of many new followers. It reminded me once again just how powerful it is when someone who has genuinely experienced a brand speaks about it in their own words.

Eunhye Cho What I considered most important wasn't conveying a lot of information, but building genuine empathy for the brand. We focused on helping promoters understand and grow to love Sulwhasoo, not simply memorize a script. During training, I shared not only the brand story but also a lot about how I personally came to love Sulwhasoo and my own experience using it. The promoters' interest turned out to be far more passionate than we expected.

Eunhye Cho One promoter once told me that, in the end, skin is no different from health. She said she deeply related to Sulwhasoo's philosophy that fundamental health and balance matter more than simply managing skin concerns, and the moment I heard that, I felt that the value Sulwhasoo had set out to communicate had truly gotten through.

Suhyeon Baek While preparing the pop-up, an important insight emerged: customers needed a channel where they could go straight from experiencing the brand to exploring and purchasing it. Based on that, we opened Sulwhasoo's official online store in Japan at the same time as the pop-up. We've since rolled out, in sequence, on @cosme Online and on Meeco, Isetan's online mall. We plan to keep expanding the customer experience across a range of touchpoints, and we'll continue expanding our offline presence by meeting more Japanese customers through well-located retail channels, so please stay tuned.

Yonghwan Kim I think New Beauty isn't about following a predetermined standard of beauty, but the experience of discovering a beauty that's entirely your own. That's why we designed the pop-up space to go beyond simply trying products, letting visitors experience the brand's history, fragrance, and sensibility all together.

Suhyeon Baek For me, it's "Everyone Global." I believe that even though language and culture differ, everyone shares the same questions about beauty. We hoped that the beauty Sulwhasoo pursues would resonate naturally with Japanese customers as well.

Eunhye Cho The New Beauty that Sulwhasoo envisions is sustainable beauty: restoring and maintaining the skin's fundamental health and balance, and continuing to cultivate a beauty that's uniquely your own as time passes.

Euiju Song I think of it as "beauty that doesn't lose to the passage of time." Looking toward the skin's own innate health, rather than trends, is the value Sulwhasoo pursues.

Yonghwan Kim I'd encourage people not to see the products only in terms of function, but to experience them as part of a self-care routine. I think Sulwhasoo's appeal comes through best when you take in the fragrance, texture, and feel on the skin all together.

Suhyeon Baek I'd really recommend the First Care Activating Serum. It's the very first product you use right after cleansing, and I feel it builds a solid foundation for the skin. I've used it consistently for over 10 years myself. If you use it alongside the Concentrated Ginseng Rejuvenating Ampoule, you can really notice a difference in your skin's condition.

Euiju Song I also consider the First Care Activating Serum, used right after cleansing, the most important step. I also use the Concentrated Ginseng Rejuvenating Cream Rich consistently. I think New Beauty isn't some special secret, but is closer to the habit of using good products consistently. Even the "beauty that doesn't lose to time" that Sulwhasoo talks about ultimately starts with consistency.

Eunhye Cho I split my routine into morning, midday, and night. In the morning, I use the First Care Activating Serum to build a foundation for my skin's condition; during the day, I use the First Care Activating Serum Mist to manage outside irritants. At night, I finish with the Overnight Recharging Mask to create an environment that supports my skin's recovery. It's less about solving skin problems and more about preventive care that helps the skin maintain its own healthy strength.

▽ Visit Sulwhasoo's Official Online Store in Japan (Click)

▽ Visit Sulwhasoo's Official Instagram Account in Japan (Click)