 "There's a rising concern among many that US President Donald Trump's tariffs could upend America’s love affair with Korean skin care. Representational image/AFP")
Across the world, women aspire for Korea’s skin aesthetic — glass skin. This has resulted in the boom of Korean beauty and skincare in the world, especially in the United States with consumers quickly embracing the K-beauty range.
But Donald Trump’s sudden imposition of import tariffs on South Korea is now looming large over the K-beauty trend, causing American fans and consumers, alike, to resort to panic buying of their favourite Korean skincare beauty products.
We take a closer look at how Trump’s tariffs is slowly upending America’s love affair with Korean skin care.
Trump tariffs on South Korean products
On April 2, on the lawns of the White House, US President Donald Trump announced his ‘Liberation Day’ tariff plan for all of America’s trading partners. Trump slapped a whopping 25 per cent tariff on all South Korean imports, which include skin care and beauty products. In fact, Seoul was among the worst-hit nations by Trump’s tariff announcement.
However, shaken by the markets and receiving pressure from within his own camp, the US president paused all reciprocal tariffs, except for those on China, for 90 days until July 8.
And before these tariffs come into effect, South Korea has dispatched its Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok and Industry Minister Ahn Duk-geun to Washington to hold trade consultations with America’s Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer. The two sides will meet with on April 24 in Washington, with South Korea’s acting President Han Duck-soo, saying he’s expecting a “win-win” from the trade talks.
“Based on candid dialogue and cooperation between the economic and trade officials of the two countries, I expect (the bilateral consultation) to open the door to a win-win solution that would be mutually beneficial,” Han told a Cabinet meeting held in Seoul.
Tariffs prompt panic buying of K-beauty products
But fans of K-beauty in the US aren’t convinced that Seoul will be able to convince Trump on his tariff decision and fearing price hikes, have resorted to panic buying of these skin and beauty products.
Take for instance, skincare store Senti Senti in Brooklyn. Almost all of the serums, face masks and creams sold at Senti Senti are imported from South Korea and Japan. In the days since Trump announced his tariffs, the store has been seeing a rush of customers, buying up their favourite K-beauty products. “They are panic-buying,” Marie Del Rosario, store manager for Senti Senti, was quoted as telling CBS News. “They know that it’s coming. They know that everything is going to change. So, they buy multiples of the products that they love.”
And it’s not just Senti Senti. According to a report in The Strait Times, many Americans are even making a beeline to South Korea to get their hands on their sunscreens and serums. One such example is Los Angeles resident Jonathan Ko, who swept up 500,000 Korean won ($463) worth of sunscreen, face masks and creams for personal use in a beauty store in Seoul.
The Washington Post also reported people frantically adding South Korean-made sunscreen to their online shopping carts, fearing that the price of these products will become too expensive after Trump’s tariffs kick in.
Additionally, on social media platform Reddit, South Korean-made sunscreen ranked high among netizens in a thread dedicated to “the beauty products worth buying now”, with some saying that they have stocked up on their “beloved” products just in case.
K-beauty set to become more exorbitant
But panic buying isn’t the only consequence of Trump’s looming tariffs. In the days since Trump announced his levies on imports, the cost of K-beauty products have also risen.
Korean-American skincare brand KraveBeauty, which sells products online in the US and in Sephora outlets, said in a TikTok video that, for the first time in its seven years of business, it may be forced to raise prices above the long-held $28 ceiling. “It’s not something that’s coming out of greed. It’s actually inevitable at this point,” said founder Liah Yoo to The Independent, adding that KraveBeauty was unlikely to be the only brand affected.
For the unaware, K-beauty has prided itself for its price point with many consumers calling it an ideal trifecta: a product that feels luxurious, seems effective, and is relatively affordable. However, the tariffs will put their appeal to test.
Smaller independent brands are likely to pass on the cost to customers if the tariffs do kick into effect. Global distributors like Yesstyle and Stylevana, popular for offering a wide variety of K-beauty products at affordable prices, are also expected to pass on higher costs to their customers. These platforms, which typically ship from warehouses in Hong Kong, and their customers, are bracing for prices to go up.
K-beauty’s market in the US
K-beauty, which is often described by its fans to be living in 2050, has a huge market in the United States. Data released by the US International Trade Commission shows that the US imported more than $7.5 billion in cosmetics in 2024. Of this, approximately $1.7 billion came from South Korea.
In fact, some K-beauty brands are now more popular in the US than in their home country. “Our biggest market is the US. We’re not really popular in Korea, I have to admit,” Sumin Lee, co-founder of Beauty of Joseon, said on the Glossy Beauty podcast last year.
One of the main reasons for K-beauty’s success in America is the continued focus on innovation. For instance, Aestura’s patented ceramide capsule claims to provide an 18-hour protective barrier by mimicking the skin’s natural lipids while brands like Medicube and Genabelle use topical ingredient PDRN (polydeoxyribonucleotide, which is derived from salmon DNA and used to promote cell repair, improve skin elasticity and accelerate wound healing).
Additionally, South Korea’s influence has grown the world over. K-dramas are gaining popularity on streaming platforms like Netflix, while K-pop stars and groups such as Yu Ji-min ‘Karina’ (from Aespa), Kim Seok-Jin ‘Jin’ (BTS), Lalisa Manobal ‘Lisa’ (Blackpink) and TWS are being tapped as global ambassadors by luxury houses including Gucci, Dior and Louis Vuitton. This phenomenon has unlocked brand purchasing power, as dedicated fans emulate their idols’ lifestyles.
With inputs from agencies