South Korean beauty fave TonyMoly puts down U.S. roots

NEW YORK — South Korean beauty fave TonyMoly is laying down U.S. roots. With one store in New York City’s Chinatown, limited product distribution in Urban Outfitters and Sephora and a new website, the brand has opened its second Big Apple location.



TonyMoly is known for its cute, cheeky packaging and value prices, both of which go a long way to explaining the brand’s appeal to teen girls. Indeed, cuteness abounds in the new store, which is chock-full of skin care products, many of which are packaged in fruit-shaped containers and boast natural, often unusual ingredients (such as camel milk). A cooling gel with the essence of bamboo is contained in a green bottle shaped like part of the plant. A face mask comes in a shiny red (plastic) apple.



While the emphasis is definitely on skin care, there are also plenty of beauty items on display, from lip gloss with a bunny face on the cap to a compact shaped like a kitten’s face. A whitening cream is packaged in a round, black-and-white case with a panda face.



Small, white cubbies display products, and there are plenty of testers for trying out items. One display, "Tony Moly Best 8," features the top-selling eight products. A tiny salon for hair styling and makeup is located in the rear of the space.



TonyMoly (a rough translation of the name is ‘stylish packaging’) was founded in 2006.