K-beauty company APR has posted its highest-ever quarterly results, driven by strong growth in the U.S. market. Overseas sales now account for nearly 90% of total revenue, reinforcing its position as a leading K-beauty exporter. On May 7, APR announced preliminary results for the first quarter of this year: revenue of 593.4 billion KRW and operating profit of 152.3 billion KRW. Compared to the same period last year, revenue grew 123% and operating profit surged 173.7%. Both figures are record highs for any single quarter since the company's founding. Overseas business was the main growth driver. First-quarter overseas revenue reached 528.1 billion KRW, up 179.9% year-on-year, accounting for 89.0% of total sales. The U.S. market showed particularly strong momentum. U.S. revenue hit 248.5 billion KRW, a 250.8% increase, representing 41.9% of total sales. According to U.S. market research firm Navigo Marketing, APR's MedyCube brand ranked third in the Amazon Beauty category with a 7.1% market share last year, and climbed to first place in the first quarter of this year with a 14.1% share. MedyCube's offline retail expansion in the U.S. is also underway. After entering Ulta Beauty, the brand plans to sequentially launch in multiple major U.S. offline channels starting in the second quarter of this year.
Growth continued in Japan and other regions. Japan revenue was 58.9 billion KRW, up 100.8% year-on-year, while other regions contributed 190.0 billion KRW, a 216.1% increase. In Japan, e-commerce channel growth on Qoo10 and Rakuten, along with offline retail expansion, drove performance. APR's global brand influence has also been recognized. It became the first Korean beauty company to be named to TIME magazine's '2026 World's Most Influential Companies' list, appearing in the 'Titans' category alongside Alphabet, NVIDIA, Meta, and SpaceX. TIME described APR as 'a company leading the next wave of global K-beauty growth,' highlighting the story of CEO Kim Byung-hoon, who founded the company in 2014 with less than $3,500 in capital, and by August 2025 had surpassed established Korean cosmetics firms in market capitalization to take the top spot. By business segment, cosmetics and beauty revenue reached 452.6 billion KRW, up 174.3%. MedyCube's PDRN product line surpassed 50 million units in global cumulative sales approximately 20 months after launch, while its toner pad line exceeded 20 million units.
Performance in Amazon sales events was also notable. During the 'Big Spring Sale' in March, MedyCube placed 10 products in the top 100 bestsellers in Beauty & Personal Care, the most of any K-beauty brand. The beauty device segment also grew, with revenue of 132.7 billion KRW, up 46.0% year-on-year, setting a record for the segment. An APR representative commented, 'Success in existing markets is spreading globally, creating a flywheel effect that generates new demand. We will continue our growth trajectory through new market entry and channel diversification.'
Source: Read the original report | Published: May 07, 2026