I Shopped at Olive Young in Korea and the US. Here’s the Biggest Difference

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Ever wonder what it’s like shopping with a beauty editor? Welcome to Counter Service, a series where we head into our favorite beauty boutiques IRL. We’re visiting the curated spaces and places that make shopping in person oh-so worth it—and you’re coming with. Step into America's very first Olive Young with us to shop all of K-beauty’s very best.

Exactly one week after I walked out of Olive Young’s flagship location in Seongsu, South Korea, I walked through the doors of the retailer’s first brick-and-mortar location in the United States. As Allure’s senior commerce director, comparing retail experiences is genuinely part of my job, so a few days home from my trip, I headed into the store, equal parts excited and jet-lagged.

Feels like I never left Korea.

Sydney Malone

Damage was done.

Syndey Malone

The In-Store Experience

I came prepared to see throngs of people; after all, on opening day, customers camped overnight, and lines wrapped around the block. We arrived an hour before the store opened, and there were eager customers of all age ranges staking out their spots along the sidewalk.

Walking through the doors, you feel like you’re entering a pharmacy-Ulta Beauty hybrid. It’s brightly lit and welcoming; opposite the entry doors is a wall-to-wall screen flashing various Olive Young lettering treatments: puffy-paint pink, edgy chrome, and a reminder that Olive Young is an anagram for “All Live Young.” Off the bat, it felt extremely similar to the Olive Young stores I visited in South Korea, and so much of that comes down to the floor plan.

You’re immediately met by two “zones,” which are essentially pop-ups within the store dedicated to specific brands. The left is reserved for Mediheal, the Korean brand behind the viral Madecassoside Blemish toner pads, with a larger-than-life replica of the cyan box sitting next to the window. For scale, it’s about the size of those robot delivery creatures and, yes, the tweezer is included. The right zone is dedicated to Urban Decay, and while this may seem surprising to US customers, it’s not at all new to Korean shoppers. I saw plenty of global brands present at South Korean Olive Youngs, including Kiehl’s, La Roche-Posay, Maybelline New York, plenty of Supergoop, Touchland, and even Olly vitamins. The same can be said for Olive Young’s US e-commerce site, which our K-beauty-obsessed editor reviewed in detail.

The assortment is generally organized by both brand and product type—something you’d expect in a big-box retailer or convenience store, but not necessarily from a specialty retailer. This layout is what characterized (and, I’ll admit, slightly overwhelmed) my experience shopping in the five-floor Seongsu Olive Young.

As an American, I’m used to getting swept up in storytelling through the retail experience, with brands moving you to purchase with emotion; by contrast, Olive Young is more straightforward. It orients you towards shopping by the desired result or ingredient, which can certainly make shopping easier for people who don’t know where to start. The masterminds at Olive Young know just where you want to begin your K-beauty journey: Sunscreen is positioned most prominently, as the first section you come across after the introduction zones, which brings me to the zinc oxide-coated elephant in the room.

Found the Biodance sheet masks!

Sydney Malone

In beauty editor heaven.

Sydney Malone

Are You Getting the Same Products in Both Markets?

Not necessarily. If you’ve been keeping up with Korean skin care, you are probably aware of the global sunscreen discourse: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) classifies sunscreens as drugs, not cosmetic products, which means it takes literal decades to approve new sunscreen filters in America—seriously, bemotrizinol, the first new filter since 1999, was approved just this week. The products stocked in Olive Young US must comply with FDA regulations, meaning the sunscreens you order online or pick up in-store have been reformulated without those famed Korean filters that are not yet approved in America.

This is the crux of the feedback customers have given the company since it closed its global site and launched a US-exclusive experience, coinciding with the store opening; much of the anticipation was the prospect of buying viral sunscreens. (After all, it’s products like Beauty of Joseon’s Sun Relief and Round Lab’s Birch Juice Moisturizing Sun Cream that helped consumers fall in love with K-beauty in the first place.)

Rena Kim, Global Communications Lead of CJ Olive Young, addressed this smaller assortment when I asked: “This is primarily because limited-edition products, collaboration items, and promotional sets require additional registration, compliance, or onboarding processes before they can be sold in the US. “As a result, certain products may become available at a later stage.” The brand also addressed this in an Instagram post, noting that this nuance primarily affects the sunscreen section. That said, even with the array of reformulations, I found that Olive Young US still shines when it comes to sunscreens. The Pasadena location’s SPF section rivals those at the three Olive Youngs I visited a week prior in size, albeit with an assortment that includes a hefty number of Western brands.

Don’t fret, though. Kim confirmed that customers can expect a broader and more diverse assortment on the US website. And when asked about the FDA approval of the new sunscreen filter, Bemotrizinol (BEMT), she said the decision is expected to further accelerate innovation across the category, “…benefiting consumers and contributing to the continued evolution of the US beauty and sun care market.” She added, “We also expect it will help bring more advanced sunscreen formulations to market in the near future.”

Shipin applying the Anua PDRN Hyaluronic Acid Hydrating Capsule Mist

Shanna Shipin

There is so much to love about this face mist: the adorable packaging, the pump top that delivers an extremely even (and broad) mist, and, of course, the instant hydration. You can pair this with Anua’s “melting” collagen mask, but I plan to take this on the go. The top is very hard to get off the pod, but it’s not the worst thing in the world, since avoiding spills is ideal for this travel version of the larger mist.

What I Bought in South Korea

I went to three Olive Youngs in Seoul, and each was unique. The Seongsu flagship was full of tourists eager to buy sunscreen, and the entry floor was dedicated to a Pokémon cafe pop-up. I can’t help but shell out for merch, so I left with a few exclusive items, including limited-edition Snorlax and Squirtle makeup puffs. The smaller Olive Youngs I went to were more locals-oriented; they were much smaller and easier to navigate, and I could take some time to consider my purchases.

Fromrier EGF Water Sun SPF 50: This was my favorite sunscreen that I picked up in Seoul. I’m sad to report that it is not available in-store in Pasadena. It’s a rare chemical sunscreen that doesn’t irritate my skin, and I bought a promo pack that included one full-size bottle and a mini keychain version that I carry everywhere.
Jung Saem Mool Metal Serum Gloss: Glossy but not tacky, with a nice metal-tip applicator like Eadem’s Le Chouchou, and in colors that are so special, like a “mellowed vintage coral nude”. I found the makeup artist–founded brand in a part of the Seongsu store with higher-end products, dedicated gondolas, and more storytelling.
Healingbird Revive No Wash Treatment: This is my favorite hair-care item from my overseas trip. It smells so good and leaves my hair noticeably softer. The packaging vibes particularly well with my Roz, Crown Affair, and Sidia countertop aesthetic, which is a plus.
Naming Glowy Heart Lip Tint: Simply because of the super-cute packaging. I bought a handful to give out as gifts.
Medicube Zero Pore Pad: This was sold out in-store at Olive Young in Pasadena—it’s no wonder, being one of the K-Beauty giant’s top-selling products. It’s so easy to use (just swipe and pat), and while I can’t say it’s zeroed out my pores just yet, it has helped mitigate the closed comedones on my forehead so far.
Illiyoon Ceramide Ato Lotion: This is one you can buy in the States, but since my whole family uses it, we go through a lot of this product. Lovely, lightweight, and you can get every last drop; the formula is encased in an internal silicone bag—no pump-top dipping here!

What Surprised Me Most About Olive Young US

While much of the experience will feel natural—just more exciting and urgent, like shopping on the surface of a laptop screen with the brightness turned all the way up—there are a few things that made my eyes go wide.

Individual product promotions are all around. The Olive Young team told me this is because, unlike seasonal sales popular in the States, individual brands determine when and how much they want to discount at any point in the year.
There are experiential areas that are notably different from the traditional US experience. There are skin and scalp analyses, and a water basin where you can not only try out facial cleansers, but it also serves as an excellent general washing area after you’ve swatched every lip tint in the makeup section (it can’t just be me). “Rather than simply displaying products on shelves, we want to create an environment where customers can explore, learn, and build routines that work for them. That's a core part of the Olive Young experience,” says Kim. Since I was there before the full retail staff was clocked in, I was only able to test the skin analysis. It told me my skin wasn't as dry as I thought, but that oil was a bigger concern. The experience was quick, free, and helpful—or as helpful as a skin analysis could be when you’re wearing makeup.
You’re starting from scratch with loyalty points. As someone who racked up a CVS-length receipt at Olive Young in Seoul, this is a bummer. With the e-commerce’s US migration, Olive Young Global members will need to start from scratch; your purchases won’t go as far, either, as Olive Young has instituted new thresholds for rewards tiers.
The hair-care and body-care products are tightly curated (read: smaller than expected). The only reason I wasn’t shocked by just how petite these areas were (they’re about the same size as the color contacts section) was that I'd gotten that reaction out of the way during my overseas visit. The body care was relegated to about two vertical gondolas in Seongsu, and the hair care just three—though they did have hot tools plugged in and ready to go to test in front of a mirror, which is not something you get in Pasadena.

I’m excited to see how these two sections evolve, particularly hair care (we called it the next K-beauty wave in Starship Seoul, our dive into shopping Korean brands). Kim explained to me that haircare has evolved: “In South Korea, the hair-care market has evolved beyond basic cleansing and styling. Consumers increasingly view scalp care as the foundation of healthy hair, with scalp health, hair conditioning, and styling becoming part of a connected, long-term care routine.” Echoing this, another Olive Young employee told me that Korean brands are keen on preventative hair care, whereas she’s found that Americans tend to focus on reparative treatments. Kim explained, “The rise of 'scalp skinification,' treating the scalp with the same level of care as facial skin, combined with the slow-aging trend, is driving growth in specialized care products such as scalp ampoules, tonics, and exfoliating scalers.” She noted this is precisely why stores, including the Pasadena location, offer a dedicated scalp analysis service.

Don’t make me leave!

Sydney Malone

Final Thoughts

I loved the in-store experience and will probably go back with my family and friends this weekend (…and for many more weekends). I found it to be more of a K-beauty discovery engine rather than a ticket to products you truly cannot find anywhere else. Much like the Olive Young US site, the assortment itself isn’t particularly exclusive, but in-store? It’s a fun way to browse brands you may not be familiar with, get your hands on products with unique ingredients (like plant-derived carotene, buzzy PDRN, and madecassoside, a derivative of cica), and find out what’s trending in the K-beauty sphere.

In fact, one of my favorite things about shopping at Olive Young in Seongsu was the same as in the Pasadena location: the health and wellness section. What? Kombucha, supplements, and teas are table stakes for a certain type of LA-native. The snack zone has a large, bright-green footprint near the check-out area, and there is even some Sanrio merch you can pick up in the section (if you can fit the plushie keychains next to your candy and chip bags). As a shopping lead, I know that surprise-and-delight is a real factor when people consider where to spend their money.

Considering Olive Young US has plenty of overlap with Ulta Beauty, Sephora, and Amazon (permitting you shop from verified sellers), being able to pick up fun snacks on your beauty run could be the reason someone chooses to venture into Olive Young, versus walking across the street to Sephora, or driving 10 minutes down to Ulta. It’ll come down to the little things when coaxing people back into the beaming K-beauty beacon on the east side of LA—and I, for one, can’t resist a mini.