Olive Young, Korea’s leading beauty and wellness retailer, announced a strategic partnership with Sephora, the world’s largest beauty retailer, as part of its broader efforts to support the global expansion of high-potential K-beauty brands and strengthen its presence as a global retail platform.
Through the partnership, Olive Young will collaborate with Sephora to introduce a dedicated K-beauty zone curated directly by Olive Young. The concept will be rolled out across Sephora’s online and offline channels, reflecting Olive Young’s expertise in brand incubation, trend-driven curation, and data-backed merchandising.
Beginning in the second half of the year, the Olive Young-curated K-beauty zones will be introduced at Sephora stores across North America (U.S. and Canada) and key global markets including Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, and Hong Kong, with expansion into additional global markets including the Middle East, the UK and Australia in 2027. The initiative aims to bring Olive Young’s point of view on K-beauty to a broader global audience, while creating scalable pathways for Korean brands to establish a sustainable presence across international markets.
The partnership represents a key milestone in Olive Young’s long-term global strategy, as the company prepares to open its first physical store in Los Angeles, California this May. Beyond retail expansion, Olive Young continues to position itself as a platform that identifies, nurtures, and scales brands, connecting their domestic success in Korea with growing global consumer demand.
Youngah Lee, Chief Strategy Officer at Olive Young said: “We are pleased to enter into this partnership with Sephora as we continue to advance our global expansion strategy. As global interest in K-beauty continues to accelerate, we see this collaboration as a meaningful opportunity to work together in expanding the reach of Korean brands in key international markets.”
Priya Venkatesh, Global Chief Merchandising Officer, Sephora said: “Korean beauty is one of the most innovative, fastest-growing and desirable categories in beauty right now. Sephora was the first major retailer to debut K-beauty brands to North American consumers in 2010, and our portfolio has grown to a global business. We are thrilled to partner with the leading team at Olive Young, bringing their expertly curated assortment of Korean beauty brands to our beauty fans, globally. Their differentiated assortment, coupled with Sephora’s unique point of view on the beauty shopping experience, will bring an unrivalled and inspiring offer, for all beauty lovers who are keen to explore the most sought-after Korean beauty products.”
