Naver, Daiso and Kurly are stepping up efforts to target the beauty market, drawing attention to whether it will lead to changes in the two-horse race dominated by CJ Olive Young and Coupang.

F&Guide, a financial information provider, and the retail industry said on Jan. 10 that CJ Olive Young’s projected 2025 sales are seen rising 20 percent from a year earlier to 5.6 trillion won. The share of online sales is expected to increase to 30 percent this year from 28 percent in 2024. Coupang’s beauty segment share is estimated at about 25 percent, based on transaction value of about 2.4 trillion won.

Against this backdrop, the growth of Naver, Daiso and Kurly is also drawing attention.

Naver is seeking to differentiate itself in the online beauty market with a direct-to-consumer model based on about 2,000 brand stores. It is strengthening a premium strategy by securing luxury brands that are not listed on other platforms, such as Tom Ford Beauty and Miu Miu Beauty. Kim Hyun-yong, an analyst at Hyundai Motor Securities, said transaction value in the brand store beauty category has risen sharply since the introduction of its guaranteed arrival service. He said annual transaction value is estimated at around 1 trillion won.

In Daiso’s case, the company was seen benefiting from securing competitive products priced at 5,000 won or less through cooperation with global ODM companies such as Kolmar Korea and Cosmax.

Daiso’s online beauty segment posted 144 percent growth in 2024 from a year earlier, followed by a 70 percent growth rate in 2025. Sales in Daiso’s beauty segment, which currently has about 50 brands and about 500 product types, are estimated to have exceeded 600 billion won last year.

An official at a company that sells products through Daiso said initial shipments alone total 300,000 units, and hit products sell more than 1 million units a year. The official said individual product prices are low, but cumulative sales across hundreds of products are sizable.

Kurly is maintaining growth with a strategy combining department store brands with early-morning delivery. It drew in global beauty companies such as L’Oreal, LVMH and P&G in 2024, pushing annual transaction value past 500 billion won. Based on 23 percent growth in the first half of 2025, more than 600 billion won is expected for the full year 2025.

Competition among platforms over online beauty is positive from the consumer perspective, as it broadens choice by price range and delivery option, from luxury goods to daily necessities.

A retail industry official said the domestic market has taken on a zero-sum pattern, entrenching a structure where if one company collapses, others absorb the demand. The official said the market for foreign visitors to South Korea and overseas expansion will ultimately become new growth engines.