Founder of Taepyeongyang Chemical (now Amorepacific) and pioneer of Korea's cosmetics industry
| Life | 1924 ~ 2003 |
| Era | 대한민국 |
| Clan | 이천 서씨 |
Suh Sung-whan (1924-2003) was a businessman born in Pyeongsan, Hwanghae, and raised in Kaesong, of the Icheon Seo clan. His father was Seo Dae-geun and his mother Yun Dok-jeong. He took over the family business that began with the camellia hair oil his mother made and founded Taepyeongyang Chemical Industry (now Amorepacific) in 1945.
In 1954 he set up Korea's first cosmetics research lab and in 1959 signed a technical tie-up with France's Coty. Around 1964 he introduced door-to-door sales and fixed pricing, in 1966 launched the herbal 'ABC Ginseng Cream', and in 1973 developed the ginseng-saponin product 'Jinsengsammi'. His philosophy was quality first and 'do not deceive consumers'.
He became chairman in 1978 and began tea cultivation on Jeju in 1979. He chaired the cosmetics industry association, was vice-president of the Seoul Chamber of Commerce and chaired the basketball association, and ran the pro baseball team Taepyeongyang Dolphins in 1988. He received the Silver Tower Order of Industrial Service Merit (1974), the Mokran Medal (1990) and, posthumously, the Mugunghwa Medal (2004), and died on 9 January 2003 aged 80.
Suh Sung-whan's venture grew from the family business of camellia hair oil his mother Yun Dok-jeong made. The oil gained a reputation around Kaesong, and the business was formalized in 1945 as Taepyeongyang Chemical Industry.
Setting up a lab, tying up with foreign firms and introducing door-to-door sales and fixed pricing are often cited in accounts of the cosmetics industry's development, and his herbal and ginseng products are described as the start of a brand strategy built on Korean ingredients.
Not confirmed in sources
He had two sons and four daughters with his wife Byeon Geum-ju; his second son Suh Kyung-bae succeeded him as chairman. See also the Icheon Seo clan page.