Shopping the beauty market on a recent trip to Seoul with the Korean trade organization Kotra, I managed to get a first-hand look at some of the best of beauty retail in the South Korean capital. The retail landscape is vast, and doing store research requires a bit of focus. Below are some of the very best and most pioneering stores and concepts in beauty.

Villa de Mûrir Beauty Flagship 

The newest addition to the South Korean retail landscape is Villa de Mûrir designed by Collective B  with the social savvy millennial in mind. The experience-driven store is divided into four programmatic areas and over two floors in a way that they can be seen at any time during the customer's journey through the space: 1) The Beauty Shop merchandised with mûrir’s products as well as curated products by other brands 2) The Makeup Shop offering five different makeup treatments  3) The Open Studio is a production studio for beauty content creators 4) The Cafe to round out the experience. 

Villa de Mûrir Beauty Flagship, 21 Dosandae-ro 11gil, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, South Korea

Stonebrick Flagship

The Hongdae flagship of one of the hottest color cosmetics brands in Korea at the moment is not to be missed. The 200-SKU Stonebrick brand was developed and launched by Smart, the hypermarket arm of Shinsegae. The bright, minimal, white retail design provides the perfect backdrop to showcase packaging and embodies the smart, color and fun brand DNA. The space allows for plenty of room to play, reinforcing the “build your color” concept of the dynamic modular range.

Stonebrick, 358-46 Seogyo-dong, Mapo-gu, Seoul, South Korea; +82 2-322-2554

Eath Library

Eath stands for Evolutionary Achievement from Traditional Heritage and is a contemporary skincare brand composed of natural ingredients and cutting-edge technology based on Korean traditional medicine. The retail space was inspired by generations of traditional Korean medical practitioners and adapted through a contemporary skincare lens informed by creative director Teo Yang who drew on memories of his first visit to a traditional Korean medicine clinic. The intimate space incorporates local art and design and is surrounded by countless books on traditional Korean medicine.

Eath Library, 31, Road 2, Samcheong-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul; +82 2-723-7001

Filter Space Seoul Dr Jart+ Flagship Store

The Dr Jart+ flagship is named the "Filter Space" because it is said the purest 3 elements of healthy beauty are water, air, and light. The design of the space is store meets installation experience that takes the cleansing power concept of the brand to thematic extremes. Visitors enter the space through an "air shower booth," which was created to keep the space clean from outside pollutants, and the space inside and out looks like a giant filtration device. Designed by Between Space, the esthetic is industrial, minimalistic, and monochromatic, with a technology-enhanced prescriptive experience.

Filter Space Seoul, 535 Sinsa-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, South Korea; +82 2-2135-5453

Chicor Flagship

The Chicor flagship opened late 2017 and is the only location located outside a Shinsegae Department Store. The three-story Gangnam flagship store is merchandised into 10 sections, according to the product sector, from skincare and hair to color cosmetics. And each floor has a theme: extreme beauty, beauty recipes, and beauty solutions. The Beauty Rookies section is a good place to scout indie beauty brands. It is also the only location that has beauty specialists that offer services like makeup application and scalp massage. The brand assortment, merchandising, and experience is right out of the Sephora playbook.

Chicor also released its own body care line in 2017 and makeup line in 2018 which is worth a look.

Chicor Flagship, 441 Seosan Building (B2F ~ 2F), Gangnam Daero Road, Seocho-gu, Seoul, South Korea; +82 2-3495-7600.

Stylenanda Pink Hotel 

This hotel-themed flagship store houses the popular Korean fashion brand and their 3CE beauty brand and is experiential retail on steroids. The Insta-worthy design is a five-floor mashup of Grand Budapest Hotel meets 1950s housewife all in a wash of millennial pink. The kitsch level is off the chart, but the theme and integrated design keeps you wanting more as you travel from the concierge desk in the lobby to the rooftop terrace.

Stylenanda Pink Hotel 37-8 Myeongdong 8-gil, Chungmuro 2(i)-ga, Jung-gu, Seoul, South Korea; +82 2-752-4546

Moonshoot Flagship

The masterminds behind this K-beauty brand are YG entertainment who manage some of the hottest K-pop sensations like 2NE1 and Psy. The multifunctional skincare and heavily pigmented cosmetics in minimal packaging were made for Instagram. This beauty playground is staffed by "Moon Shot Boys"—young beautiful male beauty experts that look like they could be the next K-pop stars.

Moonshoot Flagship, 111 Samcheong-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea; +82 70-4127-4076

Cree'mare

A beauty and lifestyle concept store with a large assortment of indie Korean brands and some Western brands. This retailer has become a beauty destination for the taste level and curation of brands, but it is the context and design of the shop with its mix of raw wood, marble, and bronze with lush greenery that somehow makes everything look a little better.

Cree'mare, B2 Urban Hive, 476, Gangnam-Daero, Gangnam-Gu, Sinnonhyeon, Seoul, South Korea

Eden Plaza 

Eden Plaza is the retail store and showroom for ENS Beauty Group's green beauty portfolio, which includes Whamisa, New Days, Ausome, 1655H Oolu, and Beausome.

Eden Plaza, 8 Samseoung-ro 147, Gangnam-Gu, Seoul, South Korea; +82 1600-6018

A-Land

These concept stores are primarily known for hip fashion and have a highly curated beauty department that carries cult-favorite K-beauty brands like Cosrx, Klairs, Benton, Whamisa, and Heimish, but they are great places to find emerging brands that are still under the radar even for Koreans.

A-Land In Myeongdong, 30, Myeongdong 6-gil, Jung-gu, Seoul, South Korea; +82 1566-7477

Jung Saem Mool Plops

This is the first offline store for world-renowned Korean makeup artist Jung Saem Mool's namesake cosmetic company JSM Beauty based on her theory of make-up called "KEY7." The three-floor flagship houses a library stacked with beauty books, a space for classes, and a cosmetic-themed garden and relaxation spaces. Jung Saem Mool also has a professional academy at a second location.

Jung Saem Mool Plops, Dosan-daero 81-gil, Cheongdam-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, South Korea; +82 70-4272-4271

Aritaum Flagship

Owned by Korean beauty conglomerate Amorepacific, the Aritaum chain is a multi-brand retailer of sorts, only selling products out of the company's vast portfolio of beauty brands. This Gangnam flagship location is an exception—Aritaum has brought together a wide range of local, niche, and international brands to better explore both established and up-and-coming beauty trends. There are daily workshops, from color mixing to brush cleansing and Amorepacific cosmetics researchers on hand for personal consultations. The company also plans to hold regular “Beauty Tip & Talk” beauty classes for influencers to learn about skincare and makeup trends.

Aritaum's My Beauty Atelier, 34-1, Myeongdong 8-gil, Jung-gu, Seoul, South Korea.

Innisfree Flagship 

The first floor of the space feels like an Innisfree road shop. It's the second and third floors where the immersion really takes place through technology and storytelling, and they manage to bring a rural feel into an urban space. The Green Café further amplify its brand mission. The concept was first launched on Jeju Island in 2013 and it creatively combines Innisfree’s beauty products with organic drinks and desserts made from local ingredients.

Innisfree Flagship, 64-2 Myeongdong 1(il)-ga, Jung-gu, Seoul, South Korea; +82 2-776-0117.

Etude House Color Factory

Etude House is a cosmetics, skincare, and haircare brand known for its unique formula innovations and super-cute packaging. The new Color Factory concept shop by Etude House offers one-on-one color consultations and allows consumers to create a custom lipstick shade and choose the bullet design and case.

Etude House Color Factory, #64-2, Myeongdong, Jung-gu, Seoul, South Korea; +82 2-753-3771.