At 3 p.m. on Nov. 13, around 40 visitors were lined up outside the Art Hall at Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP) in Seoul, waiting to enter. Another queue greeted them inside, where booths operated by 45 beauty brands were packed with visitors.
Each booth offered interactive activities, from spinning roulette wheels and answering quizzes to trying out products. Visitors carried purple bags, Kurly's signature color, filled with cosmetics and promotional giveaways.
The scene was from Kurly Beauty Festa 2026, an offline beauty event running for four days from Nov. 12 to 15 at DDP. Now in its third year, the event is themed "Make Every Day More Beautiful" and showcases 45 brands organized around different times of the day, from morning and afternoon to evening and night.
This year's event focuses on providing more space for visitors to experience each brand. Kurly reduced the number of participating brands to about half the level of its inaugural event in 2024, while expanding individual booth areas to give brands more room to showcase their products.
Participating brands attracted visitors with a variety of creative concepts. Booth staff introduced organic ingredients while wearing straw hats, while others promoted their brands using giant toothbrush models nearly as tall as adult men.
Behind the elaborate interactive booths is Kurly's strategy to expand sales channels for its partner brands by taking online connections with consumers offline.
Ameli, a makeup brand participating in the event for the first time this year, is one example. A company representative said the brand received a positive response after launching its lip gloss exclusively on Kurly in July.
"Two products that sold out at the time are being featured again at this event, and we also have an opportunity to recommend new products to consumers, so we were happy to take part," the representative said.
Ameli's booth drew attention with an AI-powered eye color analysis service, an in-person experience difficult to offer through online shopping. Visitors can scan a QR code and take a photo of their eyes for AI analysis. Based on the results, they receive eyeliner recommendations in shades suited to them, including olive brown, dark brown, milk brown and chocolate brown.
Consumers also expressed satisfaction with being able to experience brands they usually find difficult to access.
Kim Seo-yoon (24), a university student, said, "I had been curious about derma and color cosmetics brands but couldn't buy them because the prices were burdensome, so I tried them directly."
She added, "Even though I paid 25,000 won for an admission ticket, I received more benefits than that through the experiences, which makes me feel proud."
Kurly is investing in offline beauty events to sustain the growth of its beauty business, which it has built through its online platform. Beauty Kurly's transaction value rose 25 percent in the third quarter from a year earlier.
"Kurly Beauty Festa 2026 aims to offer customers an intuitive and sensory beauty experience through curated selections tailored to four different times of the day," said Kim Go-eun, head of Kurly's brand marketing group. "We hope visitors enjoy a special beauty journey through diverse booth activities and the Kurly zone, where they can experience Kurly-exclusive products."
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