Kim Byung-hoon, CEO of global beauty company APR, attended the world-renowned The Business of Beauty Global Forum 2026 as a speaker.
APR said on the 28th that Kim attended the BoB Global Forum 2026 as a speaker from June 24 to 26 local time at Stanly Ranch in Napa Valley, California.
The forum is a premium conference hosted by The Business of Fashion, a global fashion and beauty media outlet. Each year, more than 150 industry leaders, including executives, investors and retailers from around the world, gather to discuss trends and future strategies for the beauty industry. Kim is the first CEO of a K-beauty company to speak at the event.
On the afternoon of the forum's first day, Kim took part in a Fireside Chat with Priya Rao, BoF Beauty Editor-in-Chief, under the theme, "The Secrets of K-Beauty's Second Coming." He shared APR's founding philosophy and its growth story driven by technological innovation, while also discussing his views on the current beauty industry and the strengths of K-beauty.
At the event, Kim stressed that K-beauty has moved beyond being a passing trend and has settled into a sustainable growth path. He said, "In the past, K-beauty's popularity came from the 'freshness' of unique formulas and ingredients. Today, K-beauty is evolving into an area of 'trust and validation' by combining science and technology."
He pointed to APR's beauty-tech infrastructure, built on extensive customer data, as a core competitive edge. APR operates brands with distinct identities, including the derma-cosmetics brand Medicube, the beauty device brand medicube Age-R, and the low-irritation skincare brand Aprilskin. At the same time, it has achieved efficient growth by organically sharing R&D capabilities, infrastructure and customer data.
Kim said, "What matters is not simply diversifying brands to expand outward, but creating synergy while firmly maintaining each brand's distinct identity."
He also presented "Democratizing Longevity" as the key concept for the future beauty industry envisioned by APR. Kim explained, "Longevity is not just about living longer. It is about quality of life, about maintaining peak condition and confidence for a longer time. The meaning of 'Democratizing Longevity' is lowering the barriers to entry and the cost so that more people can experience it."
Based on this philosophy, APR is diversifying its business portfolio. In particular, it is moving beyond cosmetics and beauty devices into the aesthetic medical device sector. The company plans to unveil a new aesthetic medical device in Korea as early as the end of this year and expand it into a global business in the medium to long term.
An APR official said, "Kim Byung-hoon's participation in this forum was an opportunity to confirm APR's elevated standing as a representative K-beauty company. Going forward, we will continue to grow into a company that sets new standards in the global beauty market based on our differentiated beauty-tech capabilities." Jeon Sang-hee, Sportschosun.
