[Exclusive] Goodai Global, M&A heavyweight behind Beauty of Joseon and others, bets on its own brand "Depthi"

Goodai Global, which grew through acquisitions of Beauty of Joseon and SKIN1004
Expands its own-brand lineup after Dr. Nineteen
Diversifies growth drivers beyond M&A ahead of IPO

Gudai Global, which has expanded by successively acquiring promising K-beauty brands such as Beauty of Joseon and SKIN1004, is launching its own brand. The move is unusual given that the company has so far expanded its portfolio through mergers and acquisitions (M&A). Ahead of its initial public offering (IPO), Gudai Global appears to be diversifying its growth strategy by adding the development of its own brands to its existing approach of acquiring established brands.

According to industry sources on October 12, Gudai Global is preparing to launch a new skincare brand, “Depthi.” Dephi will operate as a new brand in the form of a company-in-company (CIC) within Gudai Global. Its first product will be Bonding Barrier Cream, a basic skincare product featuring aqua ectoin, a nano-lipid complex, and bonding peptides as key ingredients.

Gudai Global is also expanding its workforce to develop Dephi in earnest. The company is recruiting for positions involving the planning and production of global digital channels for Dephi, the online and offline visual identity and brand experience (BX) of its online store, and the development of its brand identity. Notably, the job responsibilities include global online distribution channels such as TikTok, Shopify, and Amazon, suggesting that Gudai Global is building the brand with overseas online shopping platforms in mind as key sales channels from launch.

This is not Gudai Global’s first launch of an in-house brand. Doctor Nineteen, introduced last year, is understood to have fallen short of expectations in terms of its commercial success. The key question is whether Dephi can become a new growth engine for Gudai Global’s in-house brand business by leveraging the company’s global distribution network and marketing capabilities.

A Gudai Global representative said, “Dephi is indeed a new brand that we planned in-house. However, no specific details have been finalized yet, including the timing of its launch in Korea or the countries and schedule for its overseas expansion.” The representative added, “We plan to expand the product range, focusing on skincare lines.”

Chun Juhyuk, CEO of Goodai Global

Industry observers are taking note of Gudai Global’s unusual move to launch a brand it developed in-house after expanding through M&A. CEO Cheon Juhyeok started out in cosmetics distribution and has rapidly expanded the company’s scale by adding K-beauty brands recognized for their competitiveness in Korea and overseas—including Beauty of Joseon, SKIN1004, Round Lab, and TIRTIR—to its portfolio. By contrast, Dephi has drawn industry attention because Gudai Global is using its own personnel and resources from the brand-planning stage.

An industry source said, “Developing an in-house brand can reduce upfront acquisition costs compared with M&A, but its commercial success is uncertain because brand recognition has to be built from scratch. The key question is whether the formula Gudai Global used to grow its existing brands will also work for its in-house brand.”

The launch of Dephi is drawing particular attention because Gudai Global is preparing for an IPO. If the company can win market recognition for its ability to develop its own brands, beyond a business model reliant on the qualitative growth of existing brands and further M&A, it could establish another pillar for expanding its business portfolio.

An industry source said, “Gudai Global has raised its corporate value by identifying promising brands, acquiring them, and then growing them in global markets. If it successfully takes its in-house brand from planning and development through to establishing a foothold in global markets ahead of its IPO, it will demonstrate its ability to create a new growth engine. That would improve market perceptions of the company and have a positive effect on its valuation.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.