The Ministry of SMEs and Startups said Tuesday its acting minister met with Brazilian cosmetics and e-commerce industry officials in Sao Paulo on Monday (local time) to explore ways to help Korean small and midsize beauty brands expand into the Brazilian market.

First Vice Minister Roh Yong-seok, who is serving as acting minister, visited the Brazilian Association of the Cosmetic, Toiletry and Fragrance Industry, known as ABIHPEC, and the e-commerce platform Mercado Libre.

While Brazil has one of the world's largest beauty markets, it has drawn relatively little investment from Korean firms due to its distance from Korea, the ministry said.

Demand for K-beauty products has grown recently alongside the broader popularity of K-pop and K-dramas, while the Amazon region's natural plant-based ingredients, widely used in cosmetics, have also drawn interest from the industry, according to the ministry.

With ABIHPEC, whose member companies account for more than 90 percent of Brazil's cosmetics sales, discussions covered building networks between companies in both countries, joint research and production combining Brazilian natural resources with Korean technology, and cooperation on export regulations.

With Mercado Libre, the largest e-commerce platform in Brazil and Latin America, the Korean government, related agencies and the company agreed to jointly provide financial and technical support to help small Korean brands list, promote and market their products on the platform.

The two sides also discussed having Mercado Libre visit Korea to hold consultations with promising K-beauty brands.

Roh said strengthening the beauty industry and diversifying export markets would help cosmetics, a top export item for small and midsize firms, become a global leader, calling Brazil's cooperation part of that solution.

This article was published with the assistance of generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.