[DigitalToday reporter Shin-hye Ahn] APR is accelerating its overseas expansion by entering India after the United States, Japan and Europe. In the U.S. and Japan it combines direct online sales (B2C) with business-to-business (B2B) distribution, but in India it is adopting a B2B-focused strategy like Europe, showing different approaches by country.

According to the industry on Tuesday, APR recently signed a strategic partnership with Indian beauty platform Nykaa and began selling Medicube products. Nykaa is a major Indian beauty distributor that operates both online and offline channels, and APR plans to speed up its establishment in the Indian market through the listing on Nykaa.

India's beauty and personal care market is expanding rapidly, driven by a growing middle class and the growth of digital commerce. A report by the India Brand Equity Foundation estimates India's beauty and personal care market will grow to $34 billion in 2028 from $28 billion in 2024.

APR's overseas business is unfolding differently by market. In the United States and Japan, which it entered before listing, APR prioritised direct online sales when entering the market but has recently adopted a two-track strategy that also includes local distribution listings (B2B). Europe, by contrast, is prioritising B2B distribution.

In Japan, it first entered the market directly through online channels such as Amazon, Qoo10 and Rakuten. More recently, it has also pursued a B2B approach through distribution in drugstores and variety shops. In the United States, it expanded B2B listings by entering large U.S. beauty retailer ULTA Beauty from the second half of last year.

In Europe, it entered the market early mainly through B2B channels such as local distributors and agents. However, because the scale of product handling is not large, it is considering a strategy to expand direct sales channels in the future. It has been operating Amazon UK and TikTok Shop since October last year. The way it is entering India is expected to follow this European path.

According to the Financial Supervisory Service's electronic disclosure system, APR's sales channel mix was 75.8 percent online and 24.2 percent offline in 2024, but shifted to 66.1 percent online and 33.9 percent offline as of the third quarter of last year, reflecting an expansion in offline channels. Online channels include its own mall and other online sellers, while offline channels include duty-free shops and B2B.

APR is also diversifying its product lineup by selling devices after establishing its cosmetics in local markets. It tends to take a more cautious approach to entering overseas markets with beauty devices than with cosmetics.

Device distribution is basically similar to cosmetics, but entry is slower than for cosmetics due to industry regulation and country-by-country certification procedures. Perceptions of beauty devices also differ by region. For India, APR judged it is important to build awareness with basic skincare products rather than device sales given the hot and humid climate.

APR's revenue mix has also recently shown a pronounced shift toward cosmetics. On a full-year basis in 2024, cosmetics revenue was 338.5 billion won, or 46.8 percent of the total, while devices accounted for 312.6 billion won, or 43.3 percent. On a cumulative basis through the third quarter of last year, cosmetics revenue expanded to 664.3 billion won, or 67.8 percent, while devices came to 284.2 billion won, or 29 percent.

APR is in fact pushing ahead with device sales in Britain. However, it has prioritised cosmetics expansion due to issues such as certification procedures. India is also not currently selling devices.

APR is focusing on establishing sales of Medicube skincare products in India. It sees that if expansion across Nykaa's online and offline channels stabilises, it could lay the groundwork to expand into devices later.

An APR official said, "We are in the early stages of entering the Indian market, so it is difficult to disclose future strategy, but we plan to focus on steadily expanding the cosmetics distribution network going forward."