• Fashion
  • Beauty
  • Watches & Jewellery
  • Culture
  • SUSTAINABILITY
  • Female TV
  • Fashion
  • Beauty
  • Watches & Jewellery
  • Culture
  • SUSTAINABILITY
  • FemaleTV
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
Subscribe Now!
  • Also available at:
Privacy Menu 1
  • About Us
  • Advertise with Us
  • Contact
  • Conditions of Access
  • PDPA
  • Privacy Policy
SPH Media

MCI (P) 032/12/2022. Published by SPH Media Limited, Co. Regn. No. 202120748H. Copyright © 2023 SPH Media Limited. All rights reserved.

  • Fashion
  • Beauty
  • Watches & Jewellery
  • Culture
  • SUSTAINABILITY
  • Female TV

Beauty

Can Glow Recipe’s Debut In Singapore Satisfy Our Obsession With K-Beauty?

Generic selectors
Exact matches only
Search in title
Search in content
Post Type Selectors
Generic selectors
Exact matches only
Search in title
Search in content
Post Type Selectors
Beauty

Can Glow Recipe’s Debut In Singapore Satisfy Our Obsession With K-Beauty?

Founders of cult beauty brand Glow Recipe – which debuts in Singapore this week – credit their Korean heritage as a factor in its winning formula.

by Amanda Chai  /   August 17, 2020

They have a cult brand and more than 800,000 Instagram followers, but co-founders of skincare label
Glow Recipe Sarah Lee and Christine Chang still remember their humble beginnings – standing in line to audition for an American business reality television show in 2015.

They had answered an open call in New York City for Shark Tank (2009 to present), which invites
start-ups to pitch their businesses to a panel of investors called Sharks. Then, Glow Recipe was an online marketplace curating K-beauty brands and skincare education for the American market.

Lee tells The Straits Times (ST) in an e-mail interview: “To stand out from the crowd, we stood in line with sheet masks on the entire time.”

She and Chang, both Korean Americans in their 30s, met as colleagues at L’Oreal Korea. They were speaking to ST about their brand’s debut in Singapore and South-east Asia – via beauty retailer Sephora on Aug 20.

“There was never a guarantee we would make it to the live show,” Lee adds.

View this post on Instagram

Remove makeup and SPF *and* smooth skin in one step. Our new Papaya Sorbet Enzyme Cleansing Balm helps give your skin the perfect canvas. Here's how:⁠ 🧡 Papaya Enzymes exfoliate and help soften and smooth just the top layer of skin⁠ (read: ultra-gentle)⁠ 🧡 Papaya Extract and Papaya Seed Oil infuse skin with vitamins A, C, and E to moisturize and soothe skin ⁠ 🧡 Lightweight Camellia Japonica Seed Oil and Apricot Kernel Oil help nourish skin⁠ 🧡 Removes makeup, SPF, and leaves glowing. 🧡 Ophthalmologist tested and certified safe for contact wearers and those with sensitive eyes. Dermatologist tested and safe for sensitive skin.⁠ Available @sephora and @sephoracanada now.⁠ #glowrecipe #crueltyfree #papayasorbet

A post shared by Glow Recipe (@glowrecipe) on Aug 15, 2020 at 9:01am PDT

But they did – and even made it on air in Season 7 in 2015, where they received three out of five in-
vestment offers from the Sharks and accepted Canadian businessman Robert Herjavec’s.

Though they ended up turning down his offer after discussions off- camera, Lee says Shark Tank “really shaped the foundation of where we are today and took our business to a new level”.

After the episode aired, the Glow Recipe site went down due to an immense spike in online traffic, she recalls. The team had to help the warehouse staff pack shipments by hand for the next few weeks.

“The episode really put us on the map with viewers and opened a lot of doors and opportunities for our brand,” Lee says.

View this post on Instagram

Nobody puts baby in a corner, but they do put it on a shelfie 👼 The new Home and Away Sets, which you can shop exclusively at @cultbeauty, come with a full size and midi size of the Banana Soufflé Moisture Cream and Watermelon Glow PHA + BHA Pore-Tight Toner. Shop them now at the link in our bio. ⁠ #glowrecipe #crueltyfree

A post shared by Glow Recipe (@glowrecipe) on Aug 13, 2020 at 12:01pm PDT

On the dime of other investors, the platform grew steadily. In 2017, they switched from curating t creating, launching their own in-house skincare line of fruit-based, clean products.

Their line-up today comprises superfood-forward products in millennial-friendly packaging, each spotlighting trendy ingredients like AHAs (alpha hydroxy acids), vitamin C and retinol. The innovations are inspired by South Korean beauty trends and age-old treatments, like the popular aqua peel facial both founders often get when visiting South Korea.

Of their debut product and best-seller, the Watermelon Glow Sleeping Mask, Chang says: “Watermelon was not commonly used in skincare at the time, and we wanted to make sure the experience and texture was as evocative of the childhood memories we had of our grandmothers rubbing cold watermelon rind on our skin to soothe heat rash and irritation.”

It sold out multiple times at launch and had a waiting list “thousands long”, she adds. To date, it remains their proudest product. It will cost $69 here, with the full range of products priced from $16 to $75.

Indeed, the duo’s Korean heritage is something they take pride in – and have used to their advantage.

When Glow Recipe started as an e-tailer in 2014, K-beauty was on the cusp of exploding in the United States, says Lee.

View this post on Instagram

The perfect glowing skin care and makeup prep sets ✨ Not sure which Glowipedia™ Kit to choose? Here's a handy guide:⁠ ✨ If you're looking for a total routine to help your skin, lips, and eye areas, the Bouncy Skin Set was made for you.⁠ ✨ Into a more low-key routine to help you get fresh, healthy skin? The Dewy Skin Set has mini products that you'll want to carry around with you everywhere.⁠ ✨ Been craving glass skin? The Glass Skin Kit has 3 essentials to help you get the translucent, clear, reflective skin of your dreams.⁠ Available @meccacosmetica and glowrecipe.com. Tap the link in our bio to shop!⁠ #glowrecipe #crueltyfree⁠

A post shared by Glow Recipe (@glowrecipe) on Aug 2, 2020 at 9:01am PDT

“Many K-beauty brands were being sold with a more promotional, discount-focused approach, instead of telling the story behind the performance and innovation of the products. People didn’t really know what K-beauty meant or were misinformed about it being an overwhelming, 10- to 15-step routine.

“We knew we’d uniquely be able to leverage our combined 20 years of bicultural beauty industry experience. Our expertise as global marketeers and developers, and the experience of working for L’Oreal, gave us the tools to bridge the gap between Korea and the US consumer.”

Their first-mover advantage aside, they believe it is their transparency that has helped the three-year-old skincare line see such success. “A huge part of our business model is creating education and skincare tutorials with each launch,” says Lee.

On social media, the duo front videos on their product formulations and uses, including going behind the scenes to look at how a product is made in Glow Recipe’s laboratories in South Korea. They
call it “skintertainment”.

After growing rapidly in the US, Australia, New Zealand and Britain, the brand’s South-east Asia launch has been hotly anticipated.

Singapore is “one of the regions outside of the US where we have the highest following on social media”, says Chang. “And Sephora was one of the first brands to believe in our mission and purpose.”

Lee adds: “We can’t wait for our brand and story to resonate with the Asian consumer, including those in Korea. Korean beauty is part of our heritage and will always be at the core of our skincare philosophy.”

Photos Courtesy of Glow Recipe

This article first appeared in The Straits Times.

 

Related Articles

These Korean Cushion Compacts Might Come In Handy For Your WFH Beauty Regimen

Why You'll Need These Korean Face Masks More Than Ever

13 Cult Korean Beauty Brands Any Beauty Fanatic Should Know

https://www.femalemag.com.sg/gallery/beauty/cult-skincare-beauty-brand-glow-recipe-launch-singapore-sephora-korean/
Can Glow Recipe's Debut In Singapore Satisfy Our Obsession With K-Beauty?
Glow Recipe’s fruit-based products, such as the best-selling Watermelon Glow Sleeping Mask, are inspired by South Korean beauty trends.
image
Glow Recipe
Watermelon Glow Sleeping Mask
image
Glow Recipe
Founders Christine Chang (above, left) and Sarah Lee (above, right) started Glow Recipe as an online marketplace curating K-beauty products.
image
Glow Recipe
  • TAGS:
  • beauty
  • beauty news
  • christine chang
  • glow recipe
  • k-beauty
  • k-beauty brands
  • korean skincare
  • sarah lee
  • skincare
  • watermelon glow sleeping mask
SHARE THIS ON

Trending

Beauty

8 Gen Z Creatives From Singapore Breaking The Mould With Their Nail Art

Beauty

What Beauty Trends Are Going To Be Big In 2023?

Beauty

Why Is Everyone Bleaching Their Eyebrows?

Beauty

8 Powder Foundations That Will Survive The Hustle And Bustle Of CNY Visiting

Beauty

Skincare PSA: Get On Board With Multitasking Products

Beauty

This Month In Beauty: Paul Smith's Home Fragrance Line Hits Shelves Here & More

Beauty

Hey Fashion Girls, Adapt S/S '23 Red Makeup Runway Looks For CNY

Beauty

8 Limited-Edition Beauty Capsules For The Year Of The Rabbit

Beauty

This Month In Beauty: The Most Summer-Perfect Lipsticks From Hermes Beauty & More

Beauty

Ace Date Night Makeup With These Tried And Tested Products

Editor’s Picks
  • Beauty 8 Gen Z Creatives From Singapore Breaking The Mould With Their Nail Art
  • Beauty What Beauty Trends Are Going To Be Big In 2023?
  • Beauty 8 Powder Foundations That Will Survive The Hustle And Bustle Of CNY Visiting
  • Beauty Skincare PSA: Get On Board With Multitasking Products
  • Beauty This Month In Beauty: Paul Smith's Home Fragrance Line Hits Shelves Here & More
  • Beauty Hey Fashion Girls, Adapt S/S '23 Red Makeup Runway Looks For CNY
Female Newsletter
Sign up for one of our free newsletters to receive the latest news, commentary and fashion features straight from FEMALE.

By signing up, you indicate that you have read and agreed with our Privacy Statement
Footer Menu
  • About Us
  • Advertise With Us
  • Contact Us
  • Conditions of Access
  • PDPA
  • Privacy Policy
SPH Media

MCI (P) 032/12/2022. Published by SPH Media Limited, Co. Regn. No. 202120748H. Copyright © 2023 SPH Media Limited. All rights reserved.