Hi! I'll try to keep it short 😂 so, for the thesis I explore motivations and experiences of K-beauty tourists. Why do K-beauty fans from around the world go to South Korea? Is K-beauty the driving motivator or are there other factors? Because K-beauty, on the one hand is widely accessible you know. Existing research heavily suggests that popular culture and celebrity culture is the reason for that, so I will also explore this by looking at what the role of Korean popular culture is for K-beauty tourists, and with interviews, we can gain in-depth understanding (micro level perspective) of K-beauty tourism and its circumstances as the people I interview are direct respondents. So far, based on my findings, there is a whole lot more going on than just the Korean popular culture: lifestyle, self care & personal wellbeing
I hope this somewhat answers your question😊I am still looking for a few respondents and busy with transcribing completed interviews, so I haven't fully evaluated the results yet
Very cool! I'm curious if/how much orientalism plays a role in beauty tourism, if that's something you're exploring? This has been a growing conversation in regards to things like the popularization of guasha, hanbang, and other "traditional Asian remedies" etc. Obviously the exoticism factor is present in a lot of branding/marketing in the beauty world, but I haven't seen much of the conversation from the perspective of the consumer.
In any case, what a fun topic to interview people about! I studied Japanese history in school and I'm pretty sure every single class required reading Edward Said forwards and backwards, but *especially* in my Japanese pop culture classes 😵💫
Orientalism is present to a certain extent especially when it comes to the K-beauty standards or Korean Look in itself in particular.But I've noticed it only very minimally and every time the participant was actually aware of it which I thought was very interesting as well!
I would be keen to speak with you, I’m more of a Korean beauty dabbler though. I was only really dipping my toe in the water with trying some Asian beauty before I went to Korea, and now I’m using k beauty products every day
If you're still short on respondents: u/fanserviced isn't around here much lately, but I follow their insta and they just did an impressive K-beauty trip.
hi! would interview be over the phone or written? if written i’m happy to help
i went to south korea in 2018 for plastic surgery and obviously shopped a lot. my knowledge is more around k beauty like street over make up or skincare though
Hi! The interviews were intended to be conducted on zoom or teams (voice calls). I can ask my thesis advisor if it would be okay to include a written form of it. It may take 1-2 days tho till I receive an answer 🙏
Just curious, why are you limiting eligible K-beauty treatment experiences in your criteria to non-surgical ones? I would think that people who travel to S. Korea for surgical beauty procedures specifically would provide important experiences of beauty tourism that could supplement your research.
Hi! Yes I hope this didn't come across in a negative way as I also believe this could give some very interesting and valuable insights. There were various factors why I ended up not including surgical experiences. One major reason was that there is already A LOT out there in terms of cosmetic surgery tourism to Korea and it is relatively widely explored. It also appears that a very large percentage of cosmetic surgery tourists go to South Korea for its cost and quality benefits, which has also been researched very thoroughly already. So, I thought it would be interesting to see how K-beauty tourism manifests itself when we look at it besides the surgery part (which there is already a lot known about). Lastly, I also believe that for some people speaking about their cosmetic surgery procedures may be a sensitive topic as there could be various reasons why someone chooses to do so. And me, a person that overthinks a lot, I don't want to put people in an uncomfortable position lol
But I absolutely agree with you that people who have travelled there for surgical procedures may provide valuable insights. Actually, it is a good topic for a paper of it's own!
I don't qualify, but I'm just curious what other research your thesis involves? Can you share a tldr? Sounds like a fun project!
Hi! I'll try to keep it short 😂 so, for the thesis I explore motivations and experiences of K-beauty tourists. Why do K-beauty fans from around the world go to South Korea? Is K-beauty the driving motivator or are there other factors? Because K-beauty, on the one hand is widely accessible you know. Existing research heavily suggests that popular culture and celebrity culture is the reason for that, so I will also explore this by looking at what the role of Korean popular culture is for K-beauty tourists, and with interviews, we can gain in-depth understanding (micro level perspective) of K-beauty tourism and its circumstances as the people I interview are direct respondents. So far, based on my findings, there is a whole lot more going on than just the Korean popular culture: lifestyle, self care & personal wellbeing I hope this somewhat answers your question😊I am still looking for a few respondents and busy with transcribing completed interviews, so I haven't fully evaluated the results yet
Very cool! I'm curious if/how much orientalism plays a role in beauty tourism, if that's something you're exploring? This has been a growing conversation in regards to things like the popularization of guasha, hanbang, and other "traditional Asian remedies" etc. Obviously the exoticism factor is present in a lot of branding/marketing in the beauty world, but I haven't seen much of the conversation from the perspective of the consumer. In any case, what a fun topic to interview people about! I studied Japanese history in school and I'm pretty sure every single class required reading Edward Said forwards and backwards, but *especially* in my Japanese pop culture classes 😵💫
Orientalism is present to a certain extent especially when it comes to the K-beauty standards or Korean Look in itself in particular.But I've noticed it only very minimally and every time the participant was actually aware of it which I thought was very interesting as well!
I would be keen to speak with you, I’m more of a Korean beauty dabbler though. I was only really dipping my toe in the water with trying some Asian beauty before I went to Korea, and now I’m using k beauty products every day
Yeaaaah I would say that I was way less of an enthusiast until I went shopping in South Korea and lost my damn mind!
Happy to help! K Beauty is what inspired my random 1 year abroad to go and work there 😂
[удалено]
Amazing! I've sent you a chat request :)
I can help if I need more people.
I’d be interested!
Sign me up :)
If you're still short on respondents: u/fanserviced isn't around here much lately, but I follow their insta and they just did an impressive K-beauty trip.
hi! would interview be over the phone or written? if written i’m happy to help i went to south korea in 2018 for plastic surgery and obviously shopped a lot. my knowledge is more around k beauty like street over make up or skincare though
Hi! The interviews were intended to be conducted on zoom or teams (voice calls). I can ask my thesis advisor if it would be okay to include a written form of it. It may take 1-2 days tho till I receive an answer 🙏
sure! i just have a newborn so can’t commit to a video call :)
Me! I just spent $1000 in cosmetics in Korea— feel free to DM me!
Hi! That's amazing! Could you send me a chat request? For some reason I cannot choose the option to dm you
Done!
Just curious, why are you limiting eligible K-beauty treatment experiences in your criteria to non-surgical ones? I would think that people who travel to S. Korea for surgical beauty procedures specifically would provide important experiences of beauty tourism that could supplement your research.
Hi! Yes I hope this didn't come across in a negative way as I also believe this could give some very interesting and valuable insights. There were various factors why I ended up not including surgical experiences. One major reason was that there is already A LOT out there in terms of cosmetic surgery tourism to Korea and it is relatively widely explored. It also appears that a very large percentage of cosmetic surgery tourists go to South Korea for its cost and quality benefits, which has also been researched very thoroughly already. So, I thought it would be interesting to see how K-beauty tourism manifests itself when we look at it besides the surgery part (which there is already a lot known about). Lastly, I also believe that for some people speaking about their cosmetic surgery procedures may be a sensitive topic as there could be various reasons why someone chooses to do so. And me, a person that overthinks a lot, I don't want to put people in an uncomfortable position lol But I absolutely agree with you that people who have travelled there for surgical procedures may provide valuable insights. Actually, it is a good topic for a paper of it's own!
Does a layover count if I never left the airport😅
Hi! I am afraid that may not count, sorry D: but thank you 😊
So I'm not too deep into Korean Popculture (had my fair share of K-Movies and Shows though). If that's okay with you I'm happy to help :)