Amorepacific, Off-White unveil beauty collaboration for COVID-19 era

South Korea-based cosmetics giant Amorepacific Corp. has unveiled its beauty collaboration with Off-White, an Italian premium fashion brand, as the Korean company aims to stage a comeback after watching its earnings drop in the wake of the pandemic.

This is the first time Off-White has joined forces with a Korean company to create a beauty brand product. 

The two teamed up to create the limited edition Protection Box, designed to cater to consumers' exceptional health and beauty needs amid the ongoing pandemic. It offers skincare, makeup and fashion items, according to Amorepacific on Jan. 26.

For the Protection Box, the Korean company developed skincare sheet masks, tone-up cushion foundation and lip balm, while Off-White created the fashion fabric mask and mask strap.

The two companies collaborated for about a year on the project, from product development to packaging design. Off-White designed the packaging box, which can also be used as an everday clutch-sized purse.

The Protection Box will be sold via Amorepacific online mall on Feb. 1 via raffle. It will also be available on the online shopping mall Naver Shopping on Feb. 8 and launched in Korea-based offline stores such as Amore Store and Amore Sungsu on Feb. 10.

The limited edition product will be released in China and Japan in March. 

Consumers who purchase the Protection Box will also receive a traditional Korean game set of yutnori, an idea proposed by Off-White Founder Virgil Abloh.

"Abloh suggested including the yutnori set as a complimentary gift, which is also why we've decided to release the product ahead of Lunar New Year's Day," said an Amorepacific official.

AMOREPACIFIC PUSHES FOR 'STRONG BRAND' STRATEGY

Founded in 2012, Off-White is a luxury street fashion brand that has become popular among the MZ generation, the combination of millennials and Generation Z, or those born between 1980 and 2000.

The brand has collaborated with many global luxury labels and designers, including Louis Vuitton, Jimmy Choo, Nike, Moncler, Rimowa and Barneys New York. Abloh is reputed for being meticulous when choosing partnerships. He has also been the artistic director og Louis Vuitton's menswear collection since 2018.

This marks Amorepacific's first partnership with a global brand. The partnership was initiated by a Korean employee working at the Off-White headquarters.

Industry watchers say that Amorepacific pushed for the collaboration to reclaim its presence in the Chinese market, considering that Off-White's popularity has increased rapidly there and in other Asian markets.

Amorepacific's performance has been weak as of late due to China's ban on Korean content, cosmetics and home appliances, coupled with the COVID-19 crisis. However, the company's performance has been gradually recovering since the second half of last year. 

The Korean company's decision to partner with Off-White using its name, Amorepacific, instead of its beauty brands, such as Sulwhasoo or Laneige, has also drawn market attention.

"It reflects Chairman Suh Kyung-bae's strong will to compete in the global market as a well-established brand," said a cosmetics industry official, adding that the company is likely to continue its partnerships with global brands.

Amorepacific's determination to boost its brand power was displayed in Chairman Suh's New Year's address when he stressed that the company should focus on creating a brand that strongly reflects the spirit of the times.


Write to Ji-hye Min at spop@hankyung.com
Danbee Lee edited this article.