Hello, everyone. I am lipstick. These days, me, my family, and my friends are loved so much, I'd like to introduce ourselves. Enjoy ~
I was born in the mid-1950s with the name 'Lipstick ABC' by Pacific Corporation (Current, Amorepacific). But when I came out in the world, Western cosmetics smuggled by US armed forces were distributed in the market. People began to learn about the existence of lipstick with the birth of myself and because of the cosmetics smuggled into the country. Actresses in foreign movies wore red lipsticks that were born before me, gaining much attention, and catching people's interest in makeup overall. However, Korea in the 1960s made putting on makeup something only the rich enjoyed due to the then-economic circumstances. So, my existence was only known, and I was not used widely.

In the 1970s, people's livelihoods began to improve gradually. And due to the impact of mass media, including newspapers, magazines, TV, and movies, Korean women naturally began to show interest in makeup. As a result, this is around the time I too began to become popular. People call the 70s 'period of the popularization of cosmetics.' The company that responded to this change the fastest was the company that brought me to the world – Pacific. Mibora's 'From Lip to Lip' ad campaign was what helped Korean women open their eyes to the importance of me. I want to thank the campaign once more. During the 1970s, the overall makeup trend was focused on elegant and graceful feminine beauty, which is why it was a time when the previous red lipstick that was popular in the 1960s was replaced by my more purplish color friends.

Entering the 1980s, the color makeup market, including lipstick, started to show life. Color TVs, which were like cultural revolution to people then, became widespread and actresses, models, and singers awoke women's interest in color makeup. Makeup became a way to express individuality and women began to express themselves through makeup, which helped invigorate the makeup market further. On top of that, right round the 1988 Seoul Olympics, import of cosmetics was allowed and the country opened its doors for oversea travel. Various color makeup products of other countries flew into Korea and I began to meet many new friends. As a result, people's makeup became more diverse and bolder. This is around the time our colors became much more diversified. Pacific's makeup brand Nageurang released a romantic and lovely pastel pink color, leading the diversification of lip colors. Nageurang's pink lipstick commercial, especially, was released on TV where the actress Hwang Shin-hye applied the pink lipstick, making pink all the rage. Hwang Shin-hye was probably the first to become a model that made the lipstick sell out.

Starting from the 1990s, lip makeup trends were led by the lip colors worn by beautiful actresses. Led by TV stars, my cousin Mamonde's Mink Brown was a big hit, and shades of brown dominated the market. The term 'girl crush' was not around, but I remember people using the term 'women of today' who had character and were bold and confident. The red wine lip color, especially, which was the color the icon of beauty Kim Hye-soo wore in a drama series, became a must-have item among young women. This was also when wearing the 'out curved' lip line larger and darker than actual lips became a trend.

However, moving forward to the late 1990s, the trend shifted towards a pure and innocent, natural look. Makeup styling changed to become more of a natural look, and my niece, the lip gloss, which was used to wear on top of lipstick, started to be used on its own. It was a surprise, but I think it's because lip gloss is clearer with less color and goes well with a natural look compared to previous lipsticks. On the other hand, in 1999, 'millennium', 'techno', 'cyber' and other futurism type of keywords gained attention, leading to a rise in the use of lip glosses of a mixed texture of 'high glossy', 'pearl' and 'glitter'. As a result, since the late 1990s, the lip category began to divide into two categories with lip gloss surpassing lipstick, which was the number one in terms of sales until then.

Starting from the 2000s, more and more of my family and friends began to appear in different functions, shapes, and textures. Lip gloss that came in tubes without the previous tip brush and the appearance of tint, which did not 'sit' on the lips but 'tinted' the lips, created a buzz among women who were only familiar with us lipsticks. The so-called 'strawberry milk' color gained huge popularity because it could create two different makeup looks – innocent and sexy. It became a big hit as a color that completed the 'pin-up girl' look in mega-trend Lee Hyo-ri's smokey makeup as well as Kim Ha-neul's natural makeup look which expressed lovely innocence. In the late 2000s, 'star lipstick marketing' began, calling certain lipstick products as '000 (star's name) lipstick'.

In the 2010s, the lip category became much more segmented as more and more brands that made us competed fiercely and the trends became diversified. New friends like lip crayon, lip marker, and lip lacquer appeared. Brands won the hearts of customers by successfully leading market segmentation using new types, colors, functions, and ways of application that we didn't offer such as convenience, high-coloring, long-lasting, and lip & blusher. On the other hand, there were friends who became sudden rising stars. This was due to the rise of celebrities. This is when the term Wanpannyeo literally meaning 'lipstick sold out girl' was used. Lipsticks appeared in drama series as part of product placement, and many brands enjoyed marketing effect that led to increased sales. In the case of Amorepacific, which made me, examples would be Jun Jihyun's 'Supreme Pink (by HERA)' and Song Hye-kyo's 'Beige Chiffon (by Laneige)'.

In 2015, Pantone's Color of the Year marsala comes to surface. Marsala truly brought along a massive impact all across. The MLBB (My Lips But Better) and a lip trend of gradation of colors became popular. In the latter part of the year, the ideal lip makeup of 'full lips' and variations of MLBB such as coral MLBB and orange MLBB became the mainstream, which continues even today as part of the mega trend. Colors of the coral family situated between pink and orange, which are the perfect color to use in daily look for women in Korea, have been loved by many since around this time to today.

Today in 2020, as we prepare for the next decade, what lip makeup trends do you know about? Matte or glossy texture? Tint? MLBB? It's difficult to be sure of and it's challenging to describe the trend in one sentence. But for this year, at least remember this.
That is, burnt colors. If MLBB began from the faded color of dried roses not too far from the color of lips, the burnt color combines MLBB, newtro and sustainability, with a story of a strong yet sentimental vintage. Put simply, the color is of a reddish-brown shade that sort of 'baked, dried, and burnt' MLBB.


To summarize, the lip color trend of the past 80 years are; red (50~60s) – magenta (70s) – pink & pastel pink (80s) – brown, red wine, clear (90s) – milky pink (2000s) – marsala & MLBB (2010s) – burnt (2020s).

With innovative product development, the market is becoming more segmented, experiencing a lot of change through marketing mix. Do you see any connection in the similarity of keywords among the trend colors? It's the 1990s and today in the 2020s. They say fashion and beauty trends repeat every 30 years. Well, let's see if in 2030s, the strawberry milk dress color of the 2000s will come back. This brings me to the end of my story~
Thank you.