Kolmar Korea reshuffled its regional office and research facilities in the United States as it seeks to bolster sales in the U.S. cosmetics market, the company said, Tuesday.
These appointments come as the company plans to launch its second U.S. manufacturing plant in Pennsylvania early next year, signaling a major expansion of its operations in the American market.
The firm, which introduced the original design manufacturing (ODM) concept to the domestic cosmetics industry, appointed Huh Yong-chul as the new CEO of Kolmar Laboratories and Kolmar USA. Huh recently headed Kolmar’s Chinese subsidiaries, Kolmar Wuxi and Kolmar Beijing, gaining recognition for improving the businesses there.
Philippe Warnery has been named Kolmar’s new global chief commercial officer. With over 25 years of experience working with global cosmetic companies, he is recognized for building networks across top-tier brands and ODMs. Warnery will focus on promoting the brand to global and indie cosmetic labels as well as influencers and celebrities worldwide, according to Kolmar.
Former Kolmar USA Chief Executive Officer George Rivera has been appointed as the new chief science officer, while Park In-ki, who brings 18 years of research experience from Kolmar’s R&D Complex in Korea, will lead the Kolmar Innovation Center in North America.
Kolmar Korea said that with the latest appointment, the company will increase the production capacity of its U.S. facilities to maximum and aims reach $100 million sales in that market within five years.
The company stated that, as Korean beauty products continue to gain popularity in the U.S. market, it plans to further emphasize its 커뮤니티 ODM services to Korean indie cosmetic brands seeking to expand their presence in the American market.
“Through our latest appointments, we’ve put our experts in marketing, production and R&D on the frontlines of the market,” a Kolmar Korea official said.
“We expect to see a new growth engine soon. It will leverage us to expand our markets beyond North America to Europe.”