The company announced that it had launched Maison Kosé on June 7. Most notably, the brick-and-mortar store will carry the company’s key global brands Decorté, Sekkisei, and Addiction Tokyo.
Other Kosé-owned brands that will be available include One by KOSÉ, KOSÉ Infinity, Magnifique (Men’s Brand), Softymo, Maihaida, and Nail Holic.
The launch of Maison Kosé is part of the company’s medium- to long-term initiative to expand its business in North America.
The firm’s business in North America has been expanding steadily over the last few years with the success of Tarte Cosmetics, the American beauty brand it acquired a decade ago.
The company has since made steady progress in introducing more brands into the North American market.
In 2023, it expanded in the US by launching Addiction Tokyo into online channels and secured a large-scale distributor for Sekkisei.
Additionally, the company aims to expand sales channels for its three brands most recently with Nordstrom for Decorté as well as an Amazon storefront for Sekkisei.
It has since worked to reinforce its marketing activities in North America, leveraging its global brand ambassador, Shohei Ohtani, a baseball player with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Additionally, the company aimed to expand sales channels for its three key brands.
Kosé joined other Japanese and South Korean beauty companies that have set their sights on Western markets like the US to offset the sluggish recovery in China.
According to the company’s 2024 first-quarter briefing, Sekkisei’s sales have been “strong at major distributors and e-commerce sales are steadily increasing”.
With Sekkisei on the right track, the firm said it would be stepping up efforts to increase the presence of Decorté and Addiction Tokyo.
Home of Japanese beauty
The launch of Maison Kosé aims to “promote Japanese beauty culture” through products and services in the US, said the firm.
Aside from retailing products, American consumers can experience Japanese-style beauty counselling from trained beauty advisors.
The beauty counselling services are also enhanced with a skin diagnosis service that offers customers a 3D scan of their faces.
“All of these experiences incorporate the latest technology while emphasising the personalised counselling we have cultivated over many years. We meticulously address each individual's needs, allowing our American customers to directly appreciate the quality of Japanese cosmetics and the value of our services.”
Maison Kosé will also host activities such as the SminkArt experience, which makes use of paint that has been upcycled from makeup.
It also offers personalised gift services such as customising text on products and ribbons for gifts.
Furthermore, inspired by Ohtani, the boutique will also offer an exclusive experience for the passionate baseball fanbase in Los Angeles.
“Children and adults can enjoy a makeover to show their team spirit and excitement. In addition to eyeshadow colours, other makeup accents will be available that feature the jersey number and ball motifs.”
Additionally, it offers a skin care experience for baseball fans that was designed to help reinvigorate and heal tired skin that has been exposed to strong ultraviolet rays.
