[비즈한국] It has been confirmed that Dewytree, a cosmetics company famous for its ‘Snail Cream,’ has relocated its headquarters to Nonhyeon-dong, Gangnam-gu. The former headquarters was located in a Songpa-gu building owned by Dewytree founder Moon Si-eon. Moon sold Dewytree to a private equity firm this past May. As Nonhyeon-dong is considered a prime location in Gangnam-gu, this relocation is expected to help boost Dewytree’s brand recognition.
Dewytree is a cosmetics company established in 2010 by Moon Si-eon, a former employee of LG Household & Health Care. The brand gained popularity thanks to its ‘Snail Cream’ product. It became a hot topic in 2018 after selecting actor Jung Hae-in as its exclusive brand model. Entering the 2020s, however, some observers have noted that the brand's popularity has waned due to intensifying industry competition.
Founder Moon Si-eon sold Dewytree to Greenwood Equity Partners (Greenwood PE) this May. It is known that Greenwood also acquired the shares of other shareholders. Following the change in its largest shareholder, Dewytree began restructuring its management, including the appointment of new CEO Jung Gu-hwa, formerly of Amorepacific. Founder Moon had previously resigned as CEO of Dewytree in April of this year.
BizHankook’s investigation confirmed that Dewytree relocated its headquarters from Songpa-gu, Seoul, to Nonhyeon-dong, Gangnam-gu, in July of this year. The building that previously housed the Dewytree headquarters is owned by founder Moon Si-eon. The seven-story building was purchased by Moon in 2008. It appears that Dewytree had been leasing the space under a jeonse (lump-sum deposit) or monthly rent arrangement.
Nonhyeon-dong, Gangnam-gu, where the new Dewytree headquarters is located, is considered a key commercial district in Seoul. For Dewytree, moving the headquarters to an area with high foot traffic is expected to yield brand exposure benefits. As a B2C (business-to-consumer) company that sells cosmetics to consumers, raising brand awareness is a critical task. In fact, Dewytree has been engaged in aggressive marketing since the change in its largest shareholder. The company operated pop-up stores in areas like Hongdae and Seongsu in July, and recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Defense Installations Agency to provide skincare products.
While the rent for the new Dewytree headquarters has not been disclosed, it is expected to be significant given the prime location in Gangnam-gu. As of the end of last year, Dewytree’s total assets stood at 10.7 billion won, which is not considered a particularly large amount.
BizHankook attempted to reach Dewytree for comment regarding the headquarters relocation but was unable to make contact.