Demand for South Korean cosmetics among North Korea’s wealthy elite shows no sign of slowing, and smugglers have begun repackaging the products into Chinese containers to slip past increasingly strict customs checks.
“Even a passing reference to South Korea can bring punishment in North Korea, but preference for South Korean cosmetics remains high here,” a source in Ryanggang province told Daily NK on Friday. “In Hyesan, demand for South Korean cosmetics has recently spread beyond donju to their children as well.” Donju, meaning “masters of money,” is the term for North Korea’s class of merchants and traders who emerged after the country’s economy opened to informal markets.
South Korean cosmetics are expensive and difficult to obtain because of the authorities’ crackdown, so simply using them has become a symbol of economic power, connections and social influence, according to the source.
Among some young people in particular, whether someone uses South Korean cosmetics can significantly shape their relationships, the source explained. Users bond by sharing information on how they obtained the products and their experiences using them, turning South Korean cosmetics into more than a display of wealth: a way of forming their own social circles.
As a result, children of wealthy families ask their parents to get them South Korean cosmetics so they are not left out among their peers, and parents comply regardless of cost to satisfy their children’s demands.
Smugglers adapt as customs tighten
North Korean authorities strictly prohibit the import and distribution of South Korean cosmetics, but traders are using every method available to bring in products because of strong internal demand and the large profits involved, the source said.
“Until now, the main method was simply removing South Korean labels and attaching Chinese ones, but that has become difficult as customs inspections have grown stricter,” the source said. “Recently, some have gone as far as transferring the contents of South Korean cosmetics into Chinese cosmetic containers and bringing them in disguised as Chinese products.”
Because it is difficult to confirm whether the contents are genuinely South Korean in such cases, there is also a risk that cheap Chinese cosmetics could be passed off as South Korean products and sold at inflated prices.
“Many of the wealthy buyers who order South Korean cosmetics have used the products for a long time, so they can tell to some extent by the scent, texture and feel,” the source said. “Merchants who have built trust with wealthy clients over years of business also have their livelihoods on the line, so it would not be easy for them to knowingly sell fakes.”
Sulwhasoo, a premium skincare brand from South Korea’s AmorePacific, and Gongjinhyang, a line from LG Household & Health Care’s luxury Whoo brand, are said to be especially popular among the North’s wealthy, with a set priced at 500 to 1,000 Chinese yuan, or about 100,000 to 200,000 South Korean won.
In China, brokers involved in trade with North Korea are reportedly transferring the contents of South Korean cosmetics into Chinese containers to fill North Korean orders.
“Customs crackdowns are intense, but North Korea keeps demanding South Korean cosmetics, so traders are buying Chinese cosmetic containers and South Korean cosmetics separately and transferring the contents themselves,” a China-based source who works with North Korea trade told Daily NK. “Foundation is especially difficult, though, because it’s hard to find containers of the right size, so traders struggle to transfer and send it.”
The source added, “If there were people who specialized in this work, they could earn money and save the traders effort, but no such specialists exist yet, so traders are doing the work themselves. No matter how much North Korea strengthens its crackdown, there will always be buyers, so the methods for evading inspection keep evolving.”
Reporting from inside North Korea
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August 24, 2026 at 11:11PM
by DailyNK(North Korean Media)