This New Natural K-Beauty Brand Brings High-Concept Design To Everyday Skincare Products

Xuyoni founder Juyeon Pae was a violinist in a past life.

She received a doctoral degree in musical arts from Yonsei University in her native South Korea, played in the Seoul Chamber Orchestra while teaching music majors at a university and wrote a book on violin playing for beginners. There isn’t an obvious through line between music and beauty, but Pae, who’s always been interested in skincare, posits the two industries are similar in many ways. “For example, to master a piece, you need a thorough understanding, analysis, and lots of practice,” she says. “In the same way, you need an introspective analysis of yourself and to learn or practice expressing your true self by bringing out your best features.”

The inspiration behind Xuyoni is that introspective analysis and balance. “The entire universe operates by keeping balance and harmony, and we as humans are aligned with the universe, with nature,” says Pae. “For example, when we are under a lot of stress or exposed to environmental stressors, our bodies and minds are disrupted and lose their balance. As a result, our skin loses its vitality.” She wanted to develop a brand to minimize the signs of those stressors, and honor and harmonize the skin.

Produced in Seoul, the Xuyoni’s 11-stockkeeping unit lineup consists of an array multifunctional products priced from $34 to $210 intended to target different skin concerns and needs and, according to Pae, make skincare “easy, flexible and sustainable.” The everyday essentials include lotions, toner-serum combinations and cream-oil hybrids. Powder wash with cactus and collagen, and a set of 30 organic, biodegradable sheet masks round out the offerings. Xuyoni donates proceeds to 1% For The Planet and Beagle Rescue Network, a South Korean nonprofit that rescues laboratory beagles and finds good homes for them.

Xuyoni’s name is a merger of “xu,” a reference to stars in Eastern astronomy, and the Sanskrit word “yoni.” A blend of plus and minus signs, its logo symbolizes yin and yang. Pae calls Xuyoni’s gender-neutral, angular packaging a “brand identifier.” She shares that it took over three years to create and is patented in the United States, Japan, Europe and China. Pae says, “Our triangular shape represents the geometric harmony of the universe, trinity, and many more regarding mindfulness and wellness.”

Refillable cartridges are available at a discount for repeat customers. They’re housed in glue-free packaging for recycling purposes. Pae explains, “Labels on plastic bottles make it difficult to recycle without physically removing them, and the chemical solvents used to separate these labels pose health hazards to workers at recycling processing centers. Glue-free packaging cuts all these extra steps.” Additional sustainable innovations are in Xuyoni’s pipeline.

Xuyoni’s sustainable approach and high-design concept are likely to appeal to gen Z and millennial shoppers, but Pae says the brand doesn’t “confine our core customer to an age group or gender.” Instead, she describes the brand’s target customer as someone “looking for minimal yet effective natural skincare products that allow them to connect both with themselves and the universe at large.” She continues, “ They aspire to a world that accepts, loves and protects people, animals, plants and other living creatures, allowing humans and nature to coexist sustainably.”

Pae declines to discuss the amount of investment it took to get Xuyoni off the ground, but discloses it’s fully self-funded. A majority of the startup’s funds so far have gone toward packaging, patent registration, ingredients, formulations, clinical trials, and organic and vegan certification along with cosmetics registrations for various countries. Xuyoni ships to most international countries and receives the most orders from the U.S., South Korea, Russia, and the U.K. Pae hopes to place the brand at retailers. She says, “We want to be anywhere our customer is.”

Similar to the beauty industry as a whole, K-Beauty brands suffered a significant sales hit during the pandemic, but the category appears to be holding strong. Pae predicts “more clean beauty brands and products” will emerge from the segment as well as “diverse makeup products and beauty tools and devices.” As for Xuyoni, she says, “Our long-term goal is to become an established brand that champions and is recognized for its recycled, recyclable, and refillable skincare products and that is continually contributing to protecting the environment. We approach any short- or long-term goal through the lens of helping consumers create a meaningful self-care experience to revitalize their skin and, more importantly, energy.”