LG Household sales hit W1.5 trillion thanks to Whoo cosmetics
On reporting its Q1 results, LG Household said that its operating profit has surged 30% year on year to W234 billion.
The healthy figures represent historical highs for the Korean beauty and health care giant, and far surpass the operating profit of W43 billion it saw as recently as Q3 2015.
LG Household describes the figures as “record high sales and operating profit” for the quarter.
Whoo-ing consumers
Whoo is a premium, herbal cosmetics line marketed at Chinese consumers and distinguishable thanks to its ornate packaging, and LG Household picked it out as a key factor in the wider company’s recent sales growth.
“Luxury cosmetics sales increased 39% yoy from strong growth of major brands,” the company confirmed in a statement.
“The contribution came from the traditional Korean royal beauty brand ‘Whoo’, which grew 47% year-on-year, and naturally fermented cosmetic brand ‘su:m’ grew 105% backed by strong demand from Chinese consumers.”
Whoo is now in its third year of retail, having been launched in 2013. It is proving a brand with remarkable growth potential, with sales having doubled year-on-year since its launch.
Naturals in China
Natural and herbal ingredients are key sales drivers for beauty brands in China, according to Euromonitor International’s most recent 2016 market report on the industry there, explaining the country’s enthusiasm for Whoo and su:m.
Increasingly, Euromonitor advises, as the marketplace increases in competitivity, brands need to start incorporating multifunctional benefits alongside naturals claims in order to court Chinese consumers successfully.
“In addition to natural and herbal ingredients, local consumers, particularly time-pressed urbanites, are keen on new multinational products due to their increasingly busy lifestyles,” the market research firm explains.