This story is part of Forbes’ coverage of Korea’s Richest 2026. See the full list here.

The K-beauty craze, which has made South Korea, one of the world’s largest exporters of cosmetics, continues to be a fountain of wealth, with three listees from the fast-rising sector. The latest beauty mogul to join the ranks of the country’s richest is Byunghoon Kim, cofounder and CEO of skincare device maker APR, an acronym for Advance People’s Real life. Kim, 37, an alum of the Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list of 2017, debuts at No. 21 with a net worth of $2.7 billion.

Founded in 2014, APR has sold more than six million units worldwide of its Medicube Age-R line of devices since its launch in 2021. The device, which claims to use electrical stimulation to aid the absorption of skincare products, became a hit after American model Hailey Bieber posted a TikTok video of herself using one in 2023.

The company reported a 170% jump in net profit to an all-time high of 290 billion won ($192 million) for 2025, as revenue more than doubled to a record 1.5 trillion won driven by overseas sales, notably in the U.S. and Japan. APR’s shares have risen more than fivefold in the past 12 months, making it the country’s most valuable skincare company with a market cap of 12 trillion won. That’s higher than the 9.5 trillion won market cap of billionaire Suh Kyung-bae’s storied Amorepacific, which is known for brands such as Sulwhasoo.

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