KOLMAR KOREA RESTRUCTURES LEADERSHIP TO ACCELERATE NORTH AMERICAN EXPANSION

KUALA LUMPUR, July 17 (Bernama) -- Kolmar Korea has appointed a new head for its North American operations and a Global Chief Commercial Officer (GCCO) to speed up its global expansion in the cosmetics industry to its North American subsidiary.

With the plan to build its second United States (US) plant early next year, the company has also set up a strategic framework that integrates production, sales, and research and development (R&D) to better penetrate the local market.

“This appointment underscores our commitment to gaining new momentum in the North American market by placing industry experts at the forefront. Kolmar Korea will focus on fostering growth through the synergistic collaboration of sales, production, and R&D and expanding its influence beyond North America to Europe,” said its representative in a statement.

Hence, Kolmar Korea has named President Yongchul Hur as Chief Executive Officer of Kolmar Laboratories and Kolmar USA, its North American subsidiaries, who intends to leverage his decades of industry experience to steer local business in North America.

Meanwhile, Philippe Warnery has been appointed as GCCO; George Rivera as Chief Science Officer (CSO) of the North American subsidiary; and Managing Director Inki Park as head of the North American R&D Center, responsible for bridging the Korean and North American markets.

The key part of the recent appointments is bringing in many people with vast experience in the global cosmetics market and this is expected to help the company enter the North American market successfully.

Kolmar Korea intends to leverage this strategic hires to maximise the operational capacity of its North American production facilities, including the first US plant and the second plant under construction.

The company aims to achieve US$100 million in sales in the next five years, therefore it plans to aggressively expand its sales network not only in North America but also in Central and South America. (US$1=RM4.67)

Moreover, with the rising popularity of K-beauty in the US market through global distribution channels, the company also plans to actively promote Original Design Manufacturer (ODM) sales that emphasise market accessibility and logistics efficiency for small and medium-sized Korean indie brands seeking entry into the US market.

-- BERNAMA