Seoul is
simply fascinating. South Korea’s largest city straddles the Han River, boasting
10 million inhabitants and a historic city center. In spring, clouds of cherry
blossoms rise above the bustling streets to meet glittering skyscrapers. Our
very own Jisoo Oh is right at the heart of it all. The 30-year-old native South
Korean with a passion for traveling, hiking and reading has worked at Beiersdorf in
Seoul since 2020 – a city where the cosmetics boom (‘K-beauty’ for short) is
second to none. Quite naturally, leading international skin care companies such
as Beiersdorf find the location inspirational for their product development.
“Skincare plays a crucial role in Korea. The market
is developing at breathtaking speed and it’s fair to say that South Korea
dominates today’s cosmetics world,” says Jisoo enthusiastically. “It’s so
exciting to be right at the epicenter of this phenomenon!” Seoul’s energy is
contagious and rewards the courageous. Following three years in the South
Korean skincare business as PR & Digital Specialist for the NX NIVEA
Accelerator, Beiersdorf's innovation hub in Seoul, and as Brand Manager for the
South Korean skin care brand CHA’UL, Jisoo launched her international adventure
as an expat at Beiersdorf’s Hamburg headquarters. “I studied English language and
literature and have always been eager to get to know other countries and
cultures. Trainees from Hamburg doing their stint abroad in Seoul made me deeply
curious about Germany. Later, in my appraisal interview I mentioned my dream of
being able to work with lots of international colleagues at Beiersdorf
headquarters one day – and my boss supported me in making this come true. I’m
very grateful to him for that!” So in May 2022 Jisoo started her great German adventure,
without much prior German-language knowledge but with a burning curiosity and fully
open to the experience ahead of her.