K-beauty fever: Korean beauty brand W Cosmetics expands into New Zealand
Friday, 16 January 2026
The beauty category that keeps on giving - Korean beauty - is “having a moment”, evidenced by another K-beauty store opening.
W Cosmetics will open its third New Zealand store in early May, hot on the heels of two openings in December.
“We’ve seen incredible appetite across the region for innovative beauty solutions, and New Zealand consumers are among the most engaged and informed in the world when it comes to skincare,” W Cosmetics head of brand Narae Ko told The Post.
The Brisbane-founded chain, which sells more than 200 mostly Korean, Chinese and Japanese brands, opened its first store in Auckland’s Sylvia Park shopping mall, and another in Newmarket, in December.
It has plans locked in to open three more, which will take its retail footprint in this country to six by the end of the year.
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Ko said there were ample opportunities for the brand to jump on outside its immediate plans for six New Zealand stores.
W Cosmetic’s Sylvia Park store had become the brand’s top selling store out of all 54 stores it operates across New Zealand and Australia.
Its core customers, aged 19 through to late 20s, spend an average of $56 per transaction with W Cosmetics, and about $225more generally per year on skincare and beauty products.
“We knew looking at the data, prior to even committing to New Zealand, that there was a keen interest,” she said.
“New Zealanders have long looked overseas for access to these products.”
K-Beauty – defined by skin-first routines and playful formats - have electrified the industry. Once a niche category, it is now one of the fastest-growing sectors worldwide, projected to double to US$187 billion by 2030. These products tend to focus on preventative skincare rather than solutions to fix skin issues.
W Cosmetics is Australia's leading Asian beauty retailer and had annual revenue of US$200 million as of mid-2025.
Ko said W Cosmetics was yet to launch its online store in New Zealand, and expected its sales and growth to ramp up significantly once it did in the second quarter of this year.
“Korean beauty is really having a moment, and people are recognising the incredible benefits because it's merged with a really great price point.”
‘Focus on prevention rather than correction’
Retail expert Chris Wilkinson, managing director of First Retail Group, said the category was highly lucrative for those specialising in it.
Many general beauty and cosmetics retailers such as Sephora and even local operators such as Greencross Health’s Life Pharmacy stores have taken notice and expanded their own ranges of K-beauty products.
“[The rise in] K-beauty is very much an outcome of social media driving awareness and ‘craveability’ for the products,” said Wilkinson.
“Koreans have long been renowned for their focus on flawless appearance and youthfulness, however that hasn't always been on-radar with other markets.
“The rise of K-pop propelled their culture onto the world stage, which shone a light on their beauty regimes and quest for youthfulness.”
Affordability was another reason that K-beauty has seen rapid growth in its global following, Wilkinson said.
He said he expected more K-beauty brands to look to New Zealand given the significant demand from local consumers.