Beiersdorf has acquired a significant stake in Seoul-based LYCL Inc., thus becoming the second largest shareholder of the rapidly growing skin care and tech start-up. This investment out of Beiersdorf’s venture fund is a natural fit with the C.A.R.E.+ strategy to win in skin care and drive consumer centricity through digitalisation.
“We see great potential in LYCL’s disruptive business model and its high degree of digital consumer connection,” Dessi Temperley, Chief Financial Officer of Beiersdorf said. With its two beauty platforms, LYCL already has access to more than 1.2 million consumers. Based on their insights, the company has implemented a disruptive data-driven innovation process to develop and market skin care products under the “unpa.Cosmetics” brand. “The digital innovation capabilities and strong consumer centricity of LYCL have resulted in triple-digit growth rates over recent years, and we believe the business model is geographically scalable,” Temperley added.
Endrik Hasemann, General Manager Beiersdorf South Korea, sees the investment into LYCL also as a proof of concept: “The decision to launch the Nivea accelerator in Korea as part of our global venturing activities was made based on the belief that the Korean ecosystem is a frontrunner regarding beauty and tech trends. We strongly believe in the future success of LYCL, and we are looking forward to driving excellent consumer experiences and skin care innovations to the next level together.”
About LYCL
LYCL. is a Korean skin care and tech startup established in 2013. The company combines three different business models: unpa.me, a review and content platform for K-Beauty products, palett.me, an influencer network platform, and unpa.Cosmetics, the startup’s own skin care brand. This setup leads to a fast development of data-driven, consumer-centric skin care products. LYCL Inc. already has a strong footprint in South Korea with the majority of product sales generated through a direct-to-consumer (DTC) business model via LYCL’s own website.
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