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Mr Lee Jun-Ho

When we began the company, instead of trying to win market share from our competitors, we preferred to focus on producing speciality eyelashes. The wearing of false eyelashes is very much in fashion today, ranging from those that look more natural to more creative ones that are used by the fashion industry but their popularity is cyclical. Eyelashes came back into fashion in the mid 1990s and then grew in popularity especially by 2005 as it was around this time that eyelashes became mainstream rather than exclusively being used in the fashion industry. At this time we were well positioned to produce eyelashes that no one else could make. It requires specialised skills and specific kinds of materials. We are very strong on the materials supply side and the production side so imitating our products is very difficult. We were able to set the trend, which no one else could do. Therefore we were able to take a leading position in eyelash manufacture due to the services we offer and the quality of our products.

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Mr Lee Jun-Ho

I see potential in the Chinese market for our products and for importing of materials. We import some products such as human hair, but under CAFTA the types of products we import are not duty free yet.

Right now though, I see real scope in the Indonesian market as the fourth largest country by population and having a very young population compared to China. Women, in general, are just at the early stages of learning about beauty so there is real growth to be had in products such as ours as well as personal care and cosmetic products.

In terms of challenges, China is at the early stage of producing cheap versions of false eyelashes but this does not really impact on our brand at the moment. The types of eyelashes they produce are more basic and tend to be more natural looking. In the future, companies in China could start to produce eyelashes more similar to our product but I do not believe they can rival us on quality but they could on price. At the moment, I do not see this as direct competition for our brand.

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Mr Lee Jun-Ho

My real goal is to start a distribution company and bring in foreign partners as I really see the potential for the domestic market in Indonesia. As I have extensive experience in the cosmetic and personal care sector, I feel that this is the sector that I should concentrate on as I see explosive growth for the future in Indonesia. Right now I am focused on my manufacturing business but in the future I see myself engaged in distribution. In terms of an international partner, I would welcome any potential investor or business in the distribution sector that has an interest in accessing the Indonesian market.

gbg

Mr Lee Jun-Ho

In Eastern Europe, we recently signed an exclusive distribution agreement with a well established company in the region. This is a market where you will see more of our products in the future. We are also seeing interest in African countries as women become more engaged in make-up and beauty products so this will be a further market for the future.