The marketing agency C&COM (C&COM) collaborated with Hanul Worldwide, a distributor of food and lifestyle goods in the Philippines, to host the ‘Hi Seoul K-Beauty & Food Product Showcase’ at ‘Sequoia Quezon City’ located in Metro Manila.
At this showcase, six domestic companies certified by ‘Hi Seoul Companies,’ which produce high-quality cosmetics and food products and aim to enter the Philippine market, along with five local distribution companies, participated. The domestic companies included three food-related businesses—Hurum (pie products), UWELLDECO (soups), HeeStoryFood (sausages and convenience foods)—and three cosmetics companies—Banobagi (serums, creams, masks), Secret Key (whitening cream), and IconBX (body scrubs). The Philippine distribution companies included the comprehensive mart chains MEGA MART, Im Mart, and Giyummy Meats and Supermarket, which handle Korean food and general merchandise, and import and distribution companies for foreign cosmetics like Sing Himart and Lumisco.
The distribution companies in the Philippines directly used or sampled Korean companies’ products at the local event and discussed collaborations for importing products through virtual meetings with Korean company representatives. The showcase allowed both parties’ officials to experience excellent products directly and meet numerous counterparts face-to-face through virtual meetings without physically visiting Korea or the Philippines.
One official from a Korean company participating in this showcase stated, “Our products have high competitiveness in the domestic market, but we’ve always regretted the lack of suitable opportunities for entry into Southeast Asian markets. Through this showcase, we had the chance, even through online video meetings, to meet promising Philippine distribution companies and explore the potential for exports.”
C&COM plans to recruit more Korean and Philippine companies to create diverse export opportunities.
Kim Taekyun, CEO of C&COM, commented, “Amidst the recent trend of increasing interest and demand in K-Beauty and K-Food in Southeast Asian markets, many companies possessing excellent products fail to find distribution channels and thus miss out on market entry opportunities. This motivated us to plan the showcase.” He added, “In the future, together with Hanul Worldwide, a key partner with a high level of expertise in Philippine distribution, we will firmly establish ourselves as a gateway for competent Korean SMEs aiming to enter the Philippines.”
C&COM has been developing designs and brands for 23 years, serving over 100 clients. It offers one-stop design development services to various businesses. It has been selected as a ‘Hi Seoul Company’ since 2017 and plans to boost the export of new fruit soju flavors targeting Filipino consumers developed through the Hi Seoul Friends support program.