Vampire Grodon
#BeautytapIRL: The Sweets, the Surprises, the Skincare (Duh!) at Our South Coast Grand Opening
Not gonna lie — it was one crazy stressful weekend! But it was all worth it to see not only Beautytap’s first flagship store come to life — #BeautytapIRL! — but to meet all of you who love K-beauty and beauty in general. THIS is why we do what we do. So thank you from the bottom of our hearts, truly. Here, the best of the best at our South Coast Plaza opening, from #skincaregoals Jessica Jung to the influencers that make us believe in kindness in the world to K-beauty lovers young and young-at-heart that make it all worth it.
When I first joined Beautytap two years ago, it’s safe to say that I had no idea that one day (in the very near future, mind you) we’d be opening our very first flagship store. Pop-ups, sure. Everyone and their mother does pop-ups these days. But a brick-and-mortar store? And in one of the most coveted, highest revenue-earning shopping centers in the entire U.S.???
OK, I don’t want to humble-brag, so … I’m just gonna brag #transparency.
OMG. This is amazinggggg!!!
Yeah, we’re pretty proud. It’s one thing to see your website live and in Technicolor. It’s quite another to see Beautytap in the flesh, with shelves teeming with our fave beauty, walls awash in pink (to mimic our L.A. office — yes, we work in a pink office), our dream flower wall, and most importantly, the ability to meet YOU in person.
A lot of blood, sweat, and tears went into our boutique at South Coast Plaza. (Or in this case, aches, sweat, and tears — thanks, squatting for hours stuffing back inventory!) Every member — from coder to editor to sales — lifted boxes, ripped open bubble wrap, merchandised product, set up wi-fi, and yes, even swept the floors. And that doesn’t even count all the prep work that went into this before a single nail was hammered. All because this is what we do. We’re proud of what we do. And we do it — seriously — for you.
From the adoptee who had just discovered K-beauty earlier this year and now couldn’t stop raving about it, to the reporter who brought her skincare-obsessed mother, to the devotee who comes to all our events because, well, Jude Chao is basically her beauty guru: You make every drop of sweat, every muscle ache, every tear soooo worth it.
Sorry — this was going to be a run-of-the-mill recap of the store opening last weekend. But as I got writing, I realized, this is really a love letter to YOU. The ones who make it all worth it. The ones who keep us going. Because oftentimes, it’s not enough that we’re doing this to make our bosses not hate us (haha) or our investors happy. We need to remind ourselves that we’re doing this because we LOVE THIS. We LOVE beauty. And we LOVE talking about and sharing beauty with you.
From this introvert, I say: THANK YOU for making our South Coast Plaza store opening so fun. So inspiring. And a reminder why I do this. Because seriously, are there any greater people in this world than people who love beauty? I think not. #notbiasedatall
So here, a pictorial recap of our opening weekend at South Coast Plaza, punctuated by no less than a mega K-pop star, a to-be Congresswoman, apparently your fave beauty influencer in the world (hi, Feiii), and a whole lotta beauty fans that make every last thing we do SO worth it.
To start, check out a behind-the-scenes look at how we got our flower wall up:
Some of our fave products, like Keep Cool sheet masks and mists, JayJun eye patches, Wonjin Effect multi-step masks, and Dr.Gloderm oil capsule masks:
Yes, we have our own collaboration with Sugarfina! (Champagne gummies included, natch):
Our rainbow mask wall. (The JayJun Collagen Skin Fit Mask is a new discovery for me and now personal fave 😍!)
Beautytap CEO James Sun, congressional candidate Young Kim, and Laurel Grant of the Segerstrom family officially open the store with a ribbon cutting (and the biggest pair of scissors ever 😂).
“We are not only selling beauty products here. We are selling the beauty of Korean culture,” said congressional candidate Young Kim. “I’m looking forward to tapping into my inner beauty. You know, running for Congress is not an easy thing; every day I’m running 24/7. And James, this is the perfect time — I need to replenish my beauty products here.”
James Sun, Young Kim, and Beautytap Director of Marketing Jude Chao:
Play with product! Ask questions! If you’re unfamiliar with a brand, scan a QR code that’ll take you to the brand story on our site. We’re interactive!
Yup, that’s a giant touchscreen “phone” that you can navigate our site with. Search for ingredients, check out articles, and if you post on your wall, you can see your post in real time!
Hey, guys need moisturizer, too! Especially when they’re Jessica’s moisturizer. 😂
We loooove these hydrogel eye patches and anti-pollution masks. Read Sheryll’s rave about them here and here.
Finally! Cushion compacts that actually have shade 25!
Keep an eye on this space! We’ll be recommending our fave products for different skin conditions here. We’ll also have skin consultations and events here.
And of course, we can’t forget our dreamy flower wall. #selfierequired (’cause the Squad did. Like 100 times.)
Oooo, who are they waiting for?
Er, duh. It’s this gorgeous angel: Jessica Jung.
I think she was the youngest fan there. Soooo cute.
Even influencers are 😍😍😍 over Jessica, like Soy (@foodwithsoy):
… and the adorable Fei (@heyitsfeiii):
Ever the gracious superstar, Jessica went out to meet the dozens of fans waiting for her outside the store.
Our Beautytap team! From left: Nicole Rodrigues of NRPR; Isabel Bravo; Delia Mendoza of NRPR; Lauren Sankey; Daniele Sanford, store manager; James Sun, CEO; Livuth Pang, web developer; Julie Sun, director of global operations; Miranda Rico, social media intern; Jude Chao, director of marketing; Anna M. Park, editor in chief; Amyra Tamayo, graphic design intern; Christine Lee, special projects intern; and Ruth Kim, associate editor and social media manager.
Hmmm, what’s this line for?
Of course, these lovely ladies! Jude Chao (@fiddysnails), Fei Yang (@heyitsfeiii), and Kim Thai (@kkimthai):
Everyone waiting for Fei. 😍😍😍
“Seeing the crowd that showed up for the influencer event was amazing,” said Jude Chao. “The store was absolutely filled with love, and it was such an honor to witness that!”
So don’t FOMO! We’ll be having all sorts of fun activations every month (or more?!?) with influencers, meet-ups, and beauty experts. So stay tuned and hope to see you soon!
Did you go to our flagship store opening at South Coast Plaza? Were you one of the first 50 to get a free scratcher? We wanna know what you got and what you thought!
Beautytap
disneygirl1
I was there and I scored a free sheet mask and tried out some new ones. I like the Keep Cool ones, but I think the Dr. Gloderm was a bit heavy for my liking. Got the job done with keeping my skin hydrated, but it seemed to take a long time to absorb.
Shout out to the staff – everyone working there had awesome makeup and outfits. I know the registers were quirky on day one, but you guys made it work. :)
annapark
Awww thanks so much! Wish we could've met in person! (And yes, the register is fixed!)
The Gloderm masks are definitely for dry or winter skin. I prefer it at night since the oil does give you an extreme glow-slash-shine. The Keep Cool ones I could wear all day. Have you tried Wonjin Effect or JayJun yet? OMG, the JayJun Collagen Skin Fit mask is my new fave.
Miranda Rico
JAYJUN MASKS ARE LIFEEEE
disneygirl1
I'll have to give them a go! Currently hoarding some reward points on a card that I want to turn into a PayPal amount or gift card – maybe I'll throw in the masks if I make an order soon.
thelillinator
I went! I got there in between events so it was nice and calm in the store when I visited. I was really happy to see some Truezyme products that have been on my wishlist in the store, so I picked them up! I can't wait to see what else you bring in store (hint hint: Sandawha)!
annapark
I wish I met you thelillinator! Hope you had fun, got a selfie at the flower wall, and I\'m dying to know what you thought of Truezyme. I\'m loving the shampoo and the multi-tonic — it\'s my go-to instead of (icky sticky) dry shampoo now.
jessicaliddy
hopefully yall can have one on the east coast. i live in ct and the winters are brudle
annapark
Haha yaaaas, spending all day indoors browsing beauty sounds like a great way to spend a snowy day!
Miranda Rico
OMG an east coast store is the dream T___T
luminousjules
Soooo NYC pop up next? :)
mariposa
I second this! I live upstate but close enough for weekend trips to NYC.
annapark
We HAVE to go to NYC next! I miss the city!
xomarthamarie
The opening looks fantastic!! What a wonderful event! I definitely need to get my Texan behind out there one day!
annapark
It'd be so amazing to see you there! (We do have a tiny pop-up in Dallas!)
sortofempty
OMG! I wish I was there to see the opening:/ It's sad that it's halfway around the globe for me, but I'll visit for sure if I'm ever near the region!
Meanwhile, I'll just twiddle my thumbs and shop on here while I wait for the day you guys go for global brick-and-mortar stores :P
annapark
It was worth it just to meet and talk to beauty lovers in person! Isn't it so fun to chat about beauty, routines, skincare products? Beauty people are the most passionate and knowledgeable ever! (And I'd love Beautytap to go global — mostly so I can do some more traveling 😂)