Amorepacific, LG H&H target Latin American growth as rising tariffs test Mexico’s promise
South Korean beauty companies are making Mexico their next target in Latin America, counting on K-beauty's momentum in North America, even as unfavorable trade conditions complicate the push.
That effort came into focus at the 2026 K-Expo Mexico, a Korea-focused trade event in Mexico City that ran from Thursday through Sunday, also attended by President Lee Jae Myung during his state visit. At Amorepacific's booth, he tried an artificial intelligence-powered skin diagnostic device and sampled a hair loss product at LG Household & Health Care's booth.
"K-beauty has gotten a strong response in Mexico, and we're aiming for more than tenfold growth within five years," Amorepacific CEO Kim Seung-hwan told Lee at the booth.
Market of promise
Mexico is Latin America's second-largest beauty market after Brazil, and Mordor Intelligence, a market research and advisory firm, projects it will grow to $22.36 billion by 2031 from $17.64 billion this year.
Korean cosmetics exports to Latin America as a whole topped $200 million for the first time last year and reached $168.06 million in the first half of this year, according to the Korea Customs Service.
At the expo, LG H&H's booth drew about 5,000 visitors a day, featuring brands leading K-beauty in North America, where the company's second-quarter sales hit 205.8 billion won ($151.6 million), up 47 percent on-year, topping China sales of 176 billion won for the first time.
"Mexico is a key strategic hub for our Latin American business, where interest in Korean culture and K-beauty runs very high," an LG H&H official said. "We plan to expand into other major markets like Brazil, building on the insights we've gained here."
The company also noted plans to bolster its presence on Mercado Libre, Latin America's leading e-commerce platform.
Other Korean companies are also building out their retail footprint in Mexico.
Silicon2, a major Korean beauty distributor, has operated its Mexican subsidiary at full capacity since June. Amorepacific and APR also stock their own brand products at retailers such as Sephora and Ulta Beauty.
Trade hurdle
Optimism runs high, but industry officials remain cautious about the region's potential.
"Latin America is a market K-beauty can newly tap, but it comes with clear barriers, such as local distribution and trade conditions," one industry official said. "As competition intensifies, companies' localization strategies will need to be matched by national-level trade cooperation to ease the tariff burden."
Kim also raised the tariff issue directly with Lee at the Amorepacific booth, saying tariffs had risen by about 10 percentage points and flagging the increase as a burden. Cosmetics now face tariffs of roughly 25 percent after Mexico raised import duties this year on goods from countries without a free trade agreement, including Korea.
Beauty companies said they are not currently considering price increases in response to the higher tariffs, but described the added cost burden as a shared difficulty across the K-beauty industry.
Lee said at a business forum in Mexico that a trade agreement between the two countries, given their complementary industrial and economic structures, would elevate their economic cooperation to the next level. The two sides agreed to launch a joint feasibility study toward such an agreement, laying the groundwork for future talks.
Even with the trade headwinds, industry officials note that beauty companies' standing has grown across Latin America, starting in Brazil and extending to Mexico.
"We expect Korean beauty companies to continue serving as private sector diplomatic envoys going forward," another industry official said.
minmin@heraldcorp.com
