Korean beauty tech unicorn APR posts another record quarter with revenue rising 28%

27 Nov 2023 --- South Korea’s APR Corporation posts record revenue thanks to strong demand for its cosmetic home devices. The company achieved record sales of KRW 122 billion (US$94.8 million) in the third-quarter and an operating profit of KRW 21.7 billion (US$16.87 million).

The beauty tech unicorn launched its flagship beauty device brand Medicube AGE-R in 2021. It saw  revenue climb by 28% year-on-year, while operating profit increased 72.7%.

This review comes nearly a month after the derma-cosmetic company filed for a preliminary review on the Korea Exchange in full-scale preparations for its IPO. APR aims to be listed on the stock market in H1 2024.

“We will focus ahead of time on strengthening corporate competitiveness through bold measures based on diversification of the global market,” says Byunghoon Kim, APR CEO.

“As the listing schedule has materialized after submitting the preliminary review request last September, APR will make its utmost efforts to operate the company stably and systematically while preparing for the listing schedule.”

APR aims to be listed on the Korean stock exchange in H1 2024.High demand for Korean cosmetic devices
On a cumulative basis, Q3 achieved record-breaking sales of KRW 371.9 billion (US$286.4 billion) and an operating profit of KRW 69.7 billion (US$53.7 billion). Year-on-year, cumulative sales soared by 37.9%, while operating profit surged by 277%.

APR’s Q3 cumulative sales reached 94% of last year’s total sales (KRW 397.7 billion / US$306.1 billion) and operating profit surpassed the total amount for the entire 2022 (KRW 39.2 billion / US$30.2 billion).

APR’s beauty business, which grew by a significant 37.4% year-on-year, played a pivotal role in driving its outstanding results. The combined growth of Medicube cosmetics and the Medicube AGE-R beauty device has been “particularly impactful,” notes the company.

AGE-R, which sold around 600,000 units in total in 2022, witnessed a surge in demand, reaching 750,000 units in Q3 2023, marking a 46.8% year-on-year expansion. This success was partly attributed to Booster Healer, an entry-level beautification device that has enjoyed consistent sales both domestically and internationally.

Medicube cosmetics also achieved “outstanding” performance thanks to its products, including the best-selling Zero Pore Pad as well as the deep line and collagen line that create synergy effects with beauty gadgets. 

Other established beauty brands such as Aprilskin, Forment and Glam.D Bio also showed solid performance, with an overall growth rate of 28.0% YoY in the cosmetics sector.

Overseas achievements are also noteworthy, highlights APR. Beauty gadgets drove the overall growth in international sales, which totaled KRW 56.1 billion (US$43.2 billion) in Q3, a 52.5% increase year-on-year. 

APR recorded overseas sales of KRW 82.6 billion (US$63.6 billion) in H1 2023 and achieved a figure equivalent to 96.5% of the total overseas sales of KRW 143.7 billion (US$110.7 billion) in 2022 in just three quarters.

By Benjamin Ferrer