Skin care specialists are becoming all the
more popular in North Korea, following growing demand from a new class of
affluent women who want to receive personalized care at home, Daily NK has
learned.
“In the past, people in the North
criticized the culture of receiving [skin] massage therapy, saying it was a
capitalist practice, but these days all kinds of aesthetic skin care
therapy–including whitening and massages– are becoming popular,” a source in
South Pyongan Province told Daily NK on Monday. “Middle-aged women referred to
as ‘skin care specialists’ are visiting homes and even state-run enterprises to
offer up their services.”
Pyongyang and other major cities have
recently seen a proliferation of massage businesses housing skin-care specialists
This boom in skin care is not limited to women in their 20s and 30s–demand for
the services is just as high among those well into their 50s, according to the
source, who noted skin whitening, aimed at reducing the apperance of freckles
and aging spots, and wrinkle treatments as the most sought-after
services.
“They offer permanent makeup such as
eyeliner and eyebrow tattoos as well, and you can choose from different types
and colors,”she went on. “Compared to before, the number of women working
as such specialists has increased by a large margin, driving down the prices
and making the services more accessible. As far as the tattoo services, a
procedure costs about the equivalent of one or two kilograms of white rice at
the markets.”
Rice continues to remain an integral component of life in North Korea, its price serving as a sensible gauge for overall
market prices. “A facial massage is worth 10 kilograms of white rice [50,000
KPW], while whitening facial therapy costs roughly the same as six kilograms of
rice [30,000 KPW],” she explained. “Factory workers usually use their lunch
break or the block of time right before they finish work to get massages;
female workers lounging in designated rest areas of enterprises, their faces
covered in creams and skin treatments, is becoming a much more common sight
these days.”
This is a stark contrast from just five
years ago, when specialists would quietly visit individual homes after hushed introductions by trusted circles; now, however, they put out photo
ads to attract more publicity, having quickly become far more proactive in promoting
their services, according to the source.
“These specialists smuggle in books on
massage techniques from China and practice extensively, so their skills are
pretty impressive,”she asserted, adding that most of the products and
equipment they use is also brought in from China or, less frequently, obtained
by bribing local cosmetic factory managers.
The driving force behind this trend: Hallyu, or “Korean Wave.” “This interest people have in skin care
comes from watching a lot of [smuggled] South Korean or foreign TV series and movies,” the
source concluded.
