Coway’s beauty subsidiary Hilerby is expanding the U.S. retail footprint of its skincare brand Re, moving beyond online channels after gaining traction with American consumers.
Re began selling its products at 50 Costco stores across the United States on October 7, marking its first major expansion into Costco’s offline retail network. The move follows sales through Costco’s online store, Amazon and TikTok Shop.
The brand has already seen strong demand through Costco’s online platform. Its Cell to Cell Cream sold out ahead of schedule in March, followed by the Cell to Cell Essence in May. The early sellouts prompted Re to broaden its presence into physical stores and increase direct access to local consumers.
Alongside its Costco expansion, Re has introduced its new Celestial Collagen Cream to the U.S. market. The product uses collagen water instead of purified water as its base and contains eight types of collagen and 10 types of peptides. The company said its proprietary Re Celestial ingredient was formulated to help improve skin density and elasticity.
The expansion comes as Hilerby seeks to diversify its sales channels and strengthen its overseas business. In Korea, the company has expanded Re’s offline presence through The Hyundai Seoul’s The Wellness House and Musinsa Beauty Hongdae this year.
Hilerby is also looking beyond the United States, with plans to expand into Canada and other North American markets as well as Europe. The company is positioning Re as a key brand for building its presence in the global K-beauty market.
The overseas expansion is also important for Hilerby as it works to improve profitability. According to previous reports citing regulatory filings, Hilerby recorded 8.5 billion won in revenue in the first half of this year, down 25.4% from 11.4 billion won a year earlier. Its net loss narrowed to 2.98 billion won from 3.53 billion won, but the company remained in the red.
The expansion of Re’s U.S. offline distribution network is therefore expected to be an important test of whether its online momentum can translate into higher sales and improved earnings.
A Re representative said the Costco expansion will provide an opportunity to showcase the brand’s collagen skincare technology directly to U.S. consumers, adding that the company plans to continue introducing differentiated K-beauty products and expanding its global distribution network.
