“After turning a profit in India in 2020, we recorded sales of 14.7 billion won last year, growing more than ninefold over the past three years. India is an attractive market with a young median age of 28 and a rapidly growing middle class.”

Limese CEO Han Deok-cheon introduced a case of successful entry into India at the first Sangsaeng Forum. He said, “In terms of global market capitalization, India has already surpassed the UK,” and “The population under 25 years of age accounts for 42.7%, and the global beauty market size is also 4th.”

Limesse is an Indian-based Korean cosmetics distribution platform. It introduces Korean cosmetics (K-beauty) brands targeting local people in their 20s and 30s through its Mumbai branch. There are 15 Indian employees working locally. Around 20 brands, including COSRX, Dr. Oracle, and Klairs, are sold at Limesse.

Last year, Limese accounted for 25% of Korea’s cosmetics exports to India. The export amount was $10,023,679 (about 13.7 billion won). CEO Han said that he became convinced that Korean cosmetics could succeed in India while attending an MBA exchange program at ISB Hyderabad, India, during his master’s degree period.

Since 2016, Limesse has been carrying samples on its carriers and promoting the competitiveness of Korean cosmetics in India. Since then, it has partnered with major Indian distributors such as Naika, Sephora India, Purple, and Foxy Live. A representative explained, “The background to our sales growth is that we quickly settled into the Indian market and formed partnerships with large local distributors.”

One representative emphasized that India’s population structure and purchasing power should be taken into account. He said that the country’s GDP based on purchasing power parity, at $9.279 trillion, is also attractive, ranking third in the world. Boston Consulting Group forecasted that India’s elite and wealthy class will increase by 7% and 16%, respectively, in 2030, more than doubling from 3% and 9% in 2019.

In particular, the median age of India is 28. This is 18 years younger than the median age of Koreans (46 years old in 2023). He said, “The MZ generation, which leads consumption, is half of the population, 700 to 800 million people, and the gender ratio among them is also 50 to 50,” and “The absolute poor are decreasing and the middle class is increasing, so the growth potential of the beauty sector is high.”

India will surpass China in 2023 to boast the world's largest population. The working-age population (25-64 years old) accounts for 50.2%. In addition, the competitive growth rate has been maintained at 7% since 2021. Not only is there growth potential, but expectations for sustainability are also high. However, CEO Han pointed out that "the process of actually conducting business is not easy due to the lack of local settlement and political transparency." India's Transparency International Corruption Investigation Index (2023) ranks 87th, lower than South Africa (85th) and Vietnam (85th). Reporter Kim Hee-ryang