Love seeing your favourite K-Pop stars plastered on billboards, MRT underpasses and shopfronts? Well, you may very well have The FaceShop to thank for this K-phenomenon.
Korean beauty brand The FaceShop claims to be the first in the history of cosmetics brands to buck the trend by selecting a male face - actor Kwon Sang-Woo – to front their campaigns way back in 2003.
Since then, a whole slew of boyish actors and boybands have jumped on board the bandwagon, where almost every single Korean beauty brand is tagged to a famous name and face.
And what’s not to love? The FaceShop has since provided us eyecandy in the form of Bae Yong Jun, Jun Ji Hyun, Won Bin and most recently Kim Hyun Joong.
This strategy seemed to work out just fine as people paid enough attention to these headturners to start sweeping the products off the shelves. That’s why it comes as no surprise that The FaceShop has just celebrated its 10th year in the industry.
Earlier this month, herworldPLUS was invited on a trip to Seoul to celebrate the brand’s 10th year anniversary and it was definitely a trip down a glitzy memory lane.
Not only did we get to meet local ambassador Suzy of Miss A fame – only the hottest K-pop starlet of the moment with countless endorsements under her belt - who helped blow out the candles on the celebratory cake; we also got to tour the exhibition that showcased the milestones in The FaceShop’s history at the Beyond Museum.
Obviously, we were stoked to see the ad campaigns of the past featuring K-Pop favourites like Won Bin, Bae Yong Jun and more.
Also present were the eight TOP Girls – local girls selected from eight countries in the region that will best represent the brand and front local brand campaigns.
Singapore’s TOP Girl, Sheena Phua, was more than a fair representative for us as she exuded confidence and poise alongside the rest of the girls. She was also definitely very game when it comes to striking poses in front of the camera every time.
To top it all off (pun not intended), brand ambassador Kim Hyun Joong – who looked tanner than before and showed off a more manly disposition with a new cropped cut - made an appearance to personally crown all eight TOP girls.
Kim shared his tips on skincare, and revealed that he will be releasing his next solo album at the end of July.
The TOP girls also got to take part in a photoshoot with Kim himself, which was definitely the highlight of their trip.
We can’t think of a better way to cap off 10 years of BB creams, sleeping masks, cosmetic waters, moisturisers and more than 1,000 stores in Asia, than to celebrate it than in its country of origin complete with hot K-pop stars.
To commemorate The FaceShop’s 10th anniversary, look out for store promotions in October as well as a limited edition anniversary set comprising of The FaceShop’s best-selling and most iconic products - Face It Power Perfection BB, Natural Sun AQ Super White Sun Cream, Raspberry Root Line, Chia Seed Moisture Cream and the Rice Bright Water Cleansing line.