Born from the desire to bring skincare back to its roots and create a line of simple, refined products suitable for people of all skin types, Klairs quickly became famous in Korea for their high quality yet affordable products. Through word of mouth, what started as a small company less than a decade ago, Klairs quickly became recognized globally. Pretty soon, staple products took No. 1 spots in credible beauty ranking charts across the world.
Modest origins
With the rise of the Hallyu Wave, Korean culture rose in global prominence, setting the stage for the humble beginnings of Wishcompany, a Korean cosmetic distribution and marketing company established in 2010 by CEO Ryan Soungho Park. Park saw the global market thirst for Korean cosmetics but did not have the means. For this, he wanted to give people around the globe a chance to discover this new sphere of cosmetics.
Many might be wondering why the foundation of Wishcompany is so important to Klairs. To answer this question, there are three important things to note.
Klairs reaches back to 2009, when the company was founded with a focus on creating gentle products for sensitive skin. Park, who personally curates products, was drawn to Klairs not only for their simple attractive products, but also their effectiveness on his own sensitive skin. From then, Klairs and Park became a match made in heaven.
In 2010, with desire for it to grow even further, Wishcompany acquired Klairs in July 2012. Aside from a few changes, Park decided to stick to Klairs’ principles as a gentle, natural brand for sensitive skin.
Already with Park’s seal of approval, Klairs became a priority of his. Park continued to be active in product development from brainstorming to testing, to ensure the products continued meeting his standards. Knowing the difficulties of finding skincare products that did not irritate his skin, Park wanted to use this immense strong point of Klairs to reach out to this niche customer base and bring skincare back to the simple basics.
Who is ‘Klairs’?
The brand Klairs transformed to what we now know as “Dear,Klairs.” Much like how many people think of personal letters when they think of the word ‘dear,’ in this case, it is a letter to a fictional girl, Klair, who suffers from sensitive skin.
Many times, cosmetic companies continue to develop their products on the ever-changing trends in the cosmetic industry rather than listening to the desires and requests of their customers. Especially in the Korean cosmetic industry that is always experimenting with new ingredients and formulas to set themselves apart from competitors, the market has become a war-zone of competition and increasingly complicated products.
Importance of customers
Dear,Klairs wanted to take a step away from the bustle of the cosmetic market and assure their customers that their products are hand-created based upon on their requests, much like a letter is hand-written and addressed to one parson. They treated each comment from satisfied, and even unsatisfied customers, with utmost respect and consideration.
This continued conversation with customers resulted in the upgrade and renewal of various items, the most notable being the Supple Preparation Facial Toner. The toner was increased 20% from 150ml to 180ml, reformulated to replace artificial fragrances with natural perfumes and retain moisture for 20% longer, and contained in a more eco-friendly bottle that uses less plastic than the conventional bottle.
Simple is best
The cosmetic industry is constantly changing to incorporate new ingredients, new trends, new routines to succeed in the ever-evolving marketplace. By no means is this bad, but with formulas becoming more and more complex, the use of additives are making it difficult for those with sensitive skin to find the right products. Klairs believes that while trends may be on the move, skin will always require the same essential ingredients to provide it necessary care.
Their slogan, “Simple But Enough,” captures the essence of Klairs’ goal and purpose. Klairs strives to provide their customers with universal products: suitable for all skin-types and usable all four seasons — skincare made simple.
Grounding principles
Behind every success story are three guiding principles. For Klairs, it is using only the best ingredients, being cruelty-free, and providing high quality products for reasonable prices.
Less is more for Klairs. Each ingredient that goes into their products are handpicked for their specific influence on the skin. They add no fillers, making Klairs a reliable source for only the highest quality skincare.
Klairs creates simple skincare without the addition of any chemicals, alcohol, parabens, and artificial colors or perfumes that may irritate skin. Klairs recognizes not only the importance of being gentle on the skin but also being gentle on the earth and prides themselves on being a green, eco-friendly, cruelty-free brand since their foundation in 2009. They pride themselves in Korea Animal Rights Advocates’ (KARA) stamp of approval as a cruelty-free brand.
Just as learning does not stop after graduation, Klairs continually tries to develop and improve upon their mistakes. One of these areas is in becoming a vegan brand. Although Klairs is vegetarian, honey has been used in some of their products for the beneficial properties it holds to the skin, and is an area of great focus as Klairs continues to develop their products and brand as a whole.
All this work is made worth it with the thought of satisfied customers. So that you enjoy the best for less, Klairs takes pride in being fair in their production and distribution. They believe that skincare, just as it should be accessible for all skin-types, should be accessible to all regardless of age or background.
A global future
Although still a fairly small brand, Klairs’ some 30 thousand international fans is a testament to their growing popularity.
Recent advancements have brought many changes, particularly in the use of technology. Klairs uses social media to their advantage to increase communication with fans and in garnering international attention. Klairs has currently been able to reach out to a total of 15 unique countries like China, t he United States and various countries in Southeast Asia and Europe through partnerships with businesses like Urban Outfitters, Sephora, and MiiN Cosmetics. Klairs looks forward to the future and hopes to give back to their loyal customers with high quality products.
Klairs plans to continue their modest approach at creating only the most essential, simple products. They continue to research and develop only the best products that are easily accessible to all people.
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