From Near-Bankruptcy to K-Beauty Powerhouse: The Rise of a Color Cosmetics ODM Queen
Creatrip Team
3 months ago
Bae Su-a, CEO of C&C International, turned her father’s near-bankrupt company into a K-beauty leader that now works with global brands like L’Oréal, Estée Lauder, LVMH (Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy), and Amorepacific. Joining the firm in 2009 as a salesperson, she helped grow annual sales from about 1 billion KRW to nearly 300 billion KRW over 16 years by focusing on 500 custom ODM (original design manufacturer) projects — developing formulations, packaging, branding and marketing for clients. C&C famously produced YSL’s Candy Glaze Color Balm, the first lip color ODM for the brand. Despite repeated crises (including the 2009 near-failure and setbacks after China’s ‘Hallyu ban’), Bae expanded production in Korea and China, plans a large new factory in Cheongju to triple output and hire 800 workers, and will boost skincare (basic cosmetics) production, overseas sales, and IT modernization. She stresses country-specific strategies for K-beauty and aims for C&C to become the world’s top ODM across both color cosmetics and skincare.
