Style seekers assemble as 'Korea Beauty Festival' kicks off with events across Seoul

The “2024 Korea Beauty Festival” began on Saturday with a pop-up booth in Hongdae. The festival is hosted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and organized by the Korea Tourism Organization and the Visit Korea Committee.

A makeup artist demonstrates a K-pop idol eye makeup look at the Hongdae booth of the "2024 Korea Beauty Festival" in Mapo District, western Seoul, on Saturday. [KIM JI-YE]

As the weather begins to warm up around the country, the heat surrounding K-beauty was also felt in Seoul's Hongdae area in Mapo District, western Seoul, on Saturday. Foreigners experienced a pop-up booth featuring Korean cosmetics, the latest hairstyles and the newest trends.

Foreigners interested in K-beauty flocked to the booth set up next to Hongdae's Olive Young, a Korean cosmetics retailer, to listen to K-makeup tips from Korean beauty experts.

Social media has helped K-beauty go global. It's also a main reason that Cristina Guayasamin, 27, from Ecuador found interest in the beauty trend. “I watch a lot of TikTok and the trend these days is to try to recreate idol makeup — for example, the lip gloss for a K-pop idol’s certain look that you want to replicate. So, I think that had a big influence.”

For Daisy Jemutai, 26, from Kenya, K-pop girl group makeup is what made her become interested in K-beauty.

“Their eye makeup is, like, very shiny, so because of that, when I do my own makeup, I’ve incorporated it,” she said.

A makeup artist demonstrates a K-pop idol eye makeup look on the model at the Hongdae booth of the "2024 Korea Beauty Festival" in Mapo District, western Seoul, on Saturday. [KIM JI-YE]

Indian content creator Nandini Kukreti, 26, said she liked the way Korean skin care and makeup merges with technology, giving Korean cushion foundation as an example. “If you are on the go on the subway or bus, you can just touch up with your cushion foundation. You don’t have to carry 10,000 different things.”

The Hongdae booth was held as part of the “2024 Korea Beauty Festival,” hosted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and organized by the Korea Tourism Organization and the Visit Korea Committee.

The monthlong "2024 Korea Beauty Festival" kicked off on Saturday and will last until June 30.

The festival aims to attract foreigners interested in K-beauty to Korea, offering various K-beauty programs and events.

Programs introducing Korean fashion, hair and makeup to foreigners are scheduled, providing opportunities for many to experience K-beauty and receive discounts for beauty products and services.

Culture Minister Yu In-chon visits the Hongdae booth of the "2024 Korea Beauty Festival" in Mapo District, western Seoul, on Saturday. [MINISTRY OF CULTURE, SPORTS AND TOURISM]

The festival’s programs have been organized in different parts of Seoul — Hongdae, Seongsu, Myeong-dong and Gangnam — which are themed around different categories of K-beauty.

The Hongdae booth in Mapo District was designated as a Korean hair and makeup center, giving visitors the tips and tricks about Korean hairstyles and makeup. It will run until Sunday.

Despite the Hongdae booth closing soon, other areas around Seoul are also ready to welcome visitors with their own pop-up booths.

In Seongsu-dong, eastern Seoul, another pop-up booth, featuring various programs for visitors to experience Korean fashion, has been set up and will be open until the end of the month.

Seongsu-dong visitors can get styling suggestions from experts and experience a fashion photo shoot. This experience will be open for visitors during the whole month.

A special lecture program will also be held by K-fashion experts on June 19 at the Seongsu booth. Experts will give out basic styling guides and methods for those interested in Korean fashion. This will be followed by a special image consulting class on June 26.

One of Korea’s major shopping areas, Myeong-dong in central Seoul, will give out rewards for visitors who purchase over 50,000 won ($36) in products related to K-beauty from June 17 to 30. During the period, a special pop-up booth will open in front of the Myeongdong Theater, where visitors can receive special gifts after presenting a purchase receipt. On weekends, special prize events will also be held.

In Gangnam District, southern Seoul, programs for visitors to meet beauty experts will be held at Jenny House Cheongdam Hill, where many Korean celebrities get their hair and makeup done. The program will begin on June 17 and end on June 30.

Culture Minister Yu In-chon visited the Hongdae booth on Saturday ahead of the festival’s opening ceremony, which was held in Gwanghwamun Square in central Seoul later that evening.

Minister Yu experienced a program inside a booth set up by Jenny House. He had his personal color analyzed — one of the most popular beauty programs among foreign visitors to Korea. The minister, a former actor known for his fashion sense, showed up at the booth donning a beige suit and a white shirt. The minister received the result of "summer cool tone" and found out that he was wearing the perfect outfit to go along with his skin color.

Alexandria Fong, 32, from the United States also got her personal color analyzed by an expert on the same day.

“Being able to have a professional to actually give you some insight and advice on what color you are, it was really fun,” she said. “The best thing is they recommend not only the colors that would go well with my skin tone but also makeup style and what kind of color lipstick best suits me and so on."

Culture Minster Yu In-chon gets his personal color analyzed inside a booth set up by Jenny House. [MINISTRY OF CULTURE, SPORTS AND TOURISM]

Famous makeup and skin care products are also displayed at the booth for visitors to try out and purchase by scanning a QR code next to each product.

Outside the booth, a makeup demonstration show was being carried out.

A Korean makeup artist demonstrated K-pop style eye makeup on a model and presented tips and tricks in English.

“I was so curious about the makeup tips because I like cosmetics so much,” Novem Chick, 28, from Hong Kong, said. “I watched the live beauty show in which a professional teacher teaches you how to create Korean makeup, and I thought it was really useful.”

The Hongdae booth was a “wholesome experience,” according to Kukreti.

The "2024 Korea Beauty Festival" involves some 380 companies in the tourism, beauty and medical industries, including as Olive Young, Lotte Duty Free and clothing brand SPAO. The companies are set to offer overseas visitors discounts for K-beauty products and customized beauty services, the Culture Ministry said.

Special event programs are also scheduled for foreign visitors to experience K-beauty and learn Korean beauty skills.

A guided tour will be held on June 12 at The House of Sulwhasoo, the flagship store of cosmetic brand Sulwhasoo, in Bukchon, central Seoul, from 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. and from 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Park Jun Beauty Lab, a renowned hair salon with nearly 100 branches in Korea, will offer a K-beauty hair education seminar for international students on June 17 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. The event will take place at Myongji College in Seodaemun District, western Seoul.

“Based on the high interest and popularity of K-beauty abroad, the ‘Korea Beauty Festival’ was organized to attract more foreigners to visit Korea and provide a happy travel experience to mark this year’s ‘Visit Korea’ campaign,” said Minister Yu during the opening ceremony held on Saturday evening in Gwanghwamun Square. Hotel Shilla CEO Lee Boo-jin, the chairperson of the Visit Korea Committee also attended the event.

The Visit Korea campaign is a large-scale tourism project run by the Culture Ministry. It aims to leverage K-culture to attract visitors to the country through events, travel packages and promotional campaigns.

“The 'Korea Beauty Festival' will not be a one-time event,” Yu added. “We plan to make the 'Korea Beauty Festival' an event that shows the new charms of Korean tourism and will be a key driving factor in opening the 20 million foreign tourist era through K-beauty.”

During the festival period, additional tourist benefits, such as discounts for flights and accommodation, will also be provided to encourage more foreigners to visit the country.

Korean Air, Asiana Airlines, Jeju Air, T’way Air and Eastar Jet will offer discounts on flights from overseas to Korea.

Major hotel brands, such as The Shilla, Mayfield Seoul, Four Points by Sheraton Gangnam and Paradise Casino Walkerhill, launched accommodation packages and a discount program for overseas visitors.

Tour programs will also be planned out for visitors, organized by Creatrip and Hanatour ITC, where they can discover and learn about K-beauty.

Detailed information about the festival, its programs, events and discount benefits can be seen on its official website.

BY KIM JI-YE [kim.jiye@joongang.co.kr]