South Korea’s APR Targets W500b in Europe After First-Half Sales Surge

South Korean beauty company APR raised its full-year European sales target to 500 billion won ($358 million) after regional revenue jumped 363 per cent in the first half of 2026.

European sales reached 228.9 billion won ($163.8 million) during the six-month period, accounting for roughly 17 per cent of the Seoul-based firm’s total revenue.

Amazon Stores and Sephora Shelves

Online momentum built quickly after APR launched official storefronts on Amazon in the UK, France, Germany, Italy and Spain late last year. Average monthly sales across those five country portals grew more than eightfold between January and June, lifted by demand during Amazon’s Prime Day event.

Physical retail followed a parallel trajectory. APR secured shelf space at Sephora in March, driving its first-half offline revenue in Europe up more than ninefold compared with the same period a year earlier. To support the retail push, the company increased its available stock-keeping units in the region by more than five times.

Korean Beauty Footprint Abroad

The European push shows how quickly Asian beauty brands can convert digital traction into physical shelf space once regional distribution networks open up. While domestic Korean cosmetics demand remains steady, major operators in Seoul increasingly rely on Western department store chains and global e-commerce portals to absorb rising production volumes.

APR is preparing to open dedicated Amazon storefronts in additional European countries while negotiating terms with regional department stores and specialty beauty chains to widen its physical distribution network before the end of the year.