HCM CITY — Mekong Beauty Show, the only business-to-business beauty exhibition in Việt Nam, will be held in HCM City from June 15 to 17.

More than 200 exhibitors from Việt Nam, Europe, South Korea, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Japan, China, Hong Kong, and India will take part.

It would be the region’s leading trade platform for beauty professionals seeking to capitalise on the fast-growing market in the four Mekong countries of Việt Nam, Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar, Nguyễn Văn Minh, deputy chairman of the Vietnam Essential Oils, Aromatherapy and Cosmetics Association, said.

Claudia Bonfiglioli, international director of Informa Beauty, the show’s organiser, told a press conference in HCM City on Thursday, “The Vietnamese market remains one of great potential for cosmetics and beauty salon products.

“Việt Nam will become very soon a premium country for cosmetics.”

The annual turnover of the Vietnamese cosmetics market is around VNĐ15 trillion (US$704.2 million), according to figures from Nielsen, the market research giant.

But the average spending by those who buy cosmetics is only US$4 per person per year compared with $20 in Thailand, it said.

According to a report from the HCM City Society of Cosmetics, the country has more than 400 cosmetics businesses, with 90 per cent of the market share cornered by foreign brands.

Most popular domestic brands such as Saigon Cosmetic, Thorakao and Lan Hảo are confined to the low-value segment and mainly export to neighbouring Asian markets, the report said.

Lý Nguyễn Lan Phương, general manager of the Saigon Cosmetic Company, said more than 40 per cent of the company’s revenues comes from exports to Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand.

Dominic OH, director of South Korean company Kintex, said: “Based on the rapid economic growth, with GDP increase of 6 per cent per year, and young people who are familiar with improving their appearance, the Vietnamese beauty market will be constantly growing.

“The Vietnamese market is ranked number 1 by K-beauty companies.”

The event, organised by Informa in co-ordination with Kintex at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Centre in District 7, is expected to attract more than 10,000 business visitors. — VNS