▲ Thiis image of Medicube's flagship "Zero Pore Pad" is provided by South Korean beauty giant APR. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE)(Yonhap)

SEOUL, Oct. 19 (Yonhap) -- APR said Monday its flagship brand Medicube has entered about 400 stores of Costco, a major U.S. retailer.

APR plans to eventually expand Medicube's presence to all Costco stores in the United States and sequentially enter Costco stores in Canada and Europe.

The product being introduced at Costco in the United States is a Costco-exclusive version of Medicube's flagship "Zero Pore Pad."

The Zero Pore Pad has maintained the No. 1 sales position in the toner and facial water category on Amazon U.S. since February last year.

APR also plans to expand its product lineup at Costco by adding popular products featuring polydeoxyribonucleotide (PDRN).

APR has been expanding its local distribution network, entering about 1,400 stores of U.S. cosmetics retailer Ulta Beauty in August last year, more than 1,500 Target stores in April this year and about 3,000 Walmart stores in June.

By the end of this year, it also plans to enter about 3,000 stores of major U.S. pharmacy chain CVS Pharmacy.

APR said it will continue securing additional local distribution channels based on consumer demand and distribution environments in each region, while linking them with online sales channels such as Amazon and TikTok Shop to expand its sales base in the U.S. market.

APR's North American sales reached 647.9 billion won (US$446 million) in the first half of this year, up more than 260 percent from the same period last year. Compared with 2021, its North American sales have grown roughly 30-fold over about five years.

"Through its entry into Costco, we expect to significantly expand consumer access to Medicube and continue strengthening our sales base across major retail channels," an APR official said. "We plan to strike a balance between expanding major retailers and local channels in each region, thereby improving consumer accessibility and strengthening our distribution competitiveness in the U.S. market."

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