Corporate giants trim portfolios and bet on beauty

Amorepacific, LG Household & Health Care (H&H), and International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) are among the latest companies shaving off non-core business segments in favor of their cosmetic arms. 

Amorepacific is weighing the sale of its health supplement manufacturing plant in Anseong, South Korea, and has begun the process of selecting an advisor. The plant has a ₩67.8 billion (US$45.8 million) quarterly production capacity, but Q1 production amounted to ₩31.2 billion (US$21.1 million). The company says the sale aims to strengthen the efficiency of its resource allocation, and the proceeds are intended to bolster its K-beauty business.

LG H&H, meanwhile, is hoping to auction off its beverage business, Haitai HTB. The Korean conglomerate maintains that its subsidiary is the third most profitable beverage company in the country. Despite its reported market strength, Choi Jin-sung, a public relations official at LG H&H, says the company is looking “to restructure our strategic portfolio.” 

Industry observers speculate that the proceeds may be used to acquire indie beauty brands to fortify the company’s cosmetics position.

Moreover, IFF has announced it is selling its portfolio of botanical extracts, vitamins and minerals, and food enhancement activities to SuanNutra. 

“This transaction is another step in optimizing our portfolio and reinforces our focus on our core innovation-led businesses — Taste, Scent, and Health & Biosciences — where we see the greatest opportunities to drive long-term profitable growth and create value for our shareholders,” says Erik Fyrwald, CEO at IFF.

The trio of companies form part of a wider trend of portfolio sharpening toward beauty. Personal care is increasingly positioned as an industry with long-term growth potential.

Production pivot 

Amorepacific’s sale of its Anseong plant follows a period of underperforming manufacturing. The facility’s operating profit fell to 46% last year, and its annual production fell 7% from ₩184.4 billion (US$124.6 million) in 2024 to ₩171 billion (US$115.5 million) in 2025. 

Since last year, Amorepacific has pursued various asset liquidation efforts in South Korea. It sold multiple office buildings located in cities such as Busan, Daegu, Daejeon, and Gwangju. The company plans to move production to its larger Osan manufacturing complex.

Amorepacific is considering selling its Anseong health supplement plant and moving production to Osan.“We are keeping the health supplement business. It is one of our core businesses. By selling the Anseong plant, we will achieve not only streamlining but more efficient management. It will lead to creating a synergy between our health supplement and beauty businesses,” says Cho Yong-hwan, a public relations officer at Amorepacific.

Corking the portfolio

Haitai HTB generated ₩343 billion (US$231.7 million) in sales last year, accounting for 7% of LG H&H’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA). The company plans to hold a preliminary auction for potential buyers in the coming month.

“We are selling Haitai HTB to restructure our strategic portfolio rather than capital gains or investment recovery,” says Choi.

Industry observers believe LG H&H will use the proceeds to acquire small up-and-coming beauty brands, aiming to solidify its position in the highly lucrative K-beauty segment. 

The company has already attempted to acquire skin care brand Torriden, which saw annual sales exceeding ₩270 billion (US$182.4 million), but talks reportedly stalled due to valuation differences.

Reinforcing scent

SuanNutra, which has agreed to acquire IFF’s botanical extracts, vitamins and minerals, and food enhancement activities, is a portfolio company of Carbyne Equity Partners.

The sale includes IFF’s natural colors and antioxidants arm, along with certain localized flavor activities in Peru. These operations generated approximately US$170 million in revenue in 2025, but no financial terms of the sale have been disclosed. The deal is expected to close by the end of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals.

IFF CEO Fyrwald describes the transaction as the next step in optimizing the company’s portfolio. He says the move reinforces IFF’s focus on its core innovation-led businesses: Taste, Scent, and Health & Biosciences.

This divestment comes a month after IFF agreed to sell its Food Ingredients business to private markets manager CVC Capital Partners. The deal was also completed so the ingredients company could focus on the same aforementioned divisions. 

IFF’s latest divestment reinforces its strategy of concentrating resources on Taste, Scent, and Health & Biosciences.Fyrwald said at the time that the transaction forms part of the company’s ongoing portfolio optimization initiative, and allows it to “further concentrate resources on our higher-growth, higher-margin segments.”

The IFF–CVC Capital Partners sale was valued at approximately US$4.3 billion, marking one of the largest ingredient-sector transactions in recent years.

Chasing beauty’s bounty

Multiple cross-industry giants are redirecting their focus toward their personal care and cosmetics business units.

At the end of March, Unilever announced that it would become a pure-play home and personal care business, after securing the divestment of its Foods business to McCormick. Post-completion, Unilever will only operate across Beauty, Wellbeing, Personal Care, and Home Care.

The announcement came on the heels of the company’s Q4 and full-year financial results, when it said it would hone in on the Beauty & Wellbeing and Personal Care sectors, which achieved €39 billion (US$44.95 billion) in revenue for FY2025.

A month later, fragrance and personal care ingredient manufacturer dsm-firmenich sold its Action Pin business to AP Marensin. The company said it aimed to concentrate its resources on its core nutrition, health, and beauty capabilities while separating out businesses that operate at the adjacent edges of those categories.

Last month, Ingredion took over its UK rival, Tate & Lyle. The companies are known for their activity in the F&B industry, but the acquisition would also combine their overlapping portfolios in specialty ingredients — a category with significant relevance in cosmetics.

Meanwhile, Personal Care Insights reported on how Korean pharmaceutical giants are increasingly eyeing an entry into the world of cosmetics. Multiple drug manufacturers have launched derma cosmetics brands, aiming to tap into the growing global demand for science-backed skin care.