GS25 is strengthening its position as a “daily‑life beauty channel,” moving beyond simply being a convenience-oriented retailer.
In Korea, the offline cosmetics distribution landscape has already shifted from road shops to Olive Young, while Daiso has taken over the low‑priced cosmetics segment with its 5,000‑won beauty lineup. Now, in 2026, GS25—leveraging its 18,000 nationwide store network—is accelerating its “beauty enhancement” strategy.
GS Retail partnered with the color‑cosmetics brand Son&Park to launch a line of 3,000‑won makeup products across all GS25 stores starting January 21. Compared to their initial collaboration in May 2024—which focused mainly on eyebrow and lip tint products—the new lineup has expanded to 12 items, including four Slim Liners and eight Multi Sticks.
GS25 has also introduced makeup tools, such as a 5,000‑won makeup brush set and various puffs through a collaboration with SKONE, completing a full beauty lineup that spans base, color cosmetics, and tools. With this, GS25 effectively entered the market as a retailer offering “affordable beauty essentials.”
Additionally, GS25 has designated “beauty” as one of its core strategic categories—alongside fresh foods and health supplements—for its 2026 Product Strategy Conference, which begins on March 27, and plans to announce detailed growth strategies.
This move is widely interpreted as a play to maximize the unique advantages of convenience stores—particularly 24‑hour accessibility—positioning GS25 between Olive Young’s dominance in the health & beauty market and Daiso’s stronghold in low‑priced beauty.
GS25 also revealed its blueprint for AX (AI Transformation), suggesting that AI‑driven, region‑ and time‑specific beauty merchandising could pose a significant competitive threat to established players like Olive Young and Daiso.
GS25 will hold the ‘2026 Product Strategy Conference’ on the 27th at ‘Pie Factory’ in Gwangjin‑gu, Seoul. (Photo provided by GS25)
Meanwhile, Lee Jung‑min, Manager of GS25’s Life & Living Team, stated in January that as of December 2025, sales of GS25’s 3,000‑won beauty products had grown 1,300% compared to their launch period, and that GS25’s 200+ beauty‑specialized stores recorded sales more than 22 times higher than general stores.
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