K-Brand Global Expansion Project

Ten small and medium-sized beauty, fashion and lifestyle brands take part

Export consultations with major European buyers; regulatory and logistics concerns heard

Noh Yong-seok, first vice minister of SMEs and Startups, tours the exhibition and experience zone at the K-Beauty Glow Week in Rome, held in the Italian capital on Friday (local time). [Ministry of SMEs and Startups]
Noh Yong-seok, first vice minister of SMEs and Startups, tours the exhibition and experience zone at the K-Beauty Glow Week in Rome, held in the Italian capital on Friday (local time). [Ministry of SMEs and Startups]

South Korea's Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced Saturday that it held the "K-Beauty Glow Week in Rome" in Italy.

The event is part of the ministry's ongoing K-Brand Global Expansion Project, which promotes Korean small and medium-sized enterprise brands in key markets around the world. Rome marks the third stop in the series, following Shanghai in January and Hanoi, Vietnam, in April.

Ten small and medium-sized brands with strong export track records in the beauty, fashion and lifestyle sectors participated in the event.

Each participating brand was given a dedicated exhibition and hands-on experience space, allowing visitors to browse and try products directly. To reach potential customers who could not attend in person, the ministry invited prominent local influencers to showcase product features and share reviews in real time through social media channels.

Major buyers with retail distribution networks across Italy and the broader European market visited the venue, examined the products on display and met with participating companies to discuss ways to expand the reach of Korean goods through their distribution infrastructure.

Europe is a rapidly growing market for Korean consumer goods, driven in particular by rising interest in K-beauty. Italy, widely regarded as a hub of the fashion and beauty industries, was chosen as a strategic base for gauging the response of local consumers and retailers. The ministry said it plans to expand support so that K-brands across fashion, lifestyle and other sectors can establish a foothold in Europe, building on the momentum of K-beauty.

First Vice Minister Noh Yong-seok visited the venue, tried the products on display and encouraged participating entrepreneurs before holding a roundtable to hear their export-related difficulties and policy requests. Companies raised concerns about the growing burden of complying with tightening European regulations and flagged logistics challenges, calling on the government to provide more active support in addressing those issues.

"Europe is an important market where K-beauty has gained remarkable popularity in recent years, and we expect that to drive broader growth for K-brands as a whole," Noh said. "However, tightening export regulations are increasing the burden on companies operating there, so we will strengthen policy support to help our small and medium-sized enterprises overcome these difficulties and expand further into the European market."


boo@heraldcorp.com