K-beauty order surge triggers cosmetic container shortage in Korea
Surging orders for K-beauty products have pushed Korean cosmetics ODM manufacturers Korea Kolmar and Cosmax to record production capacity, creating a bottleneck in cosmetic container supply such as tubes and pouches. Pumtech Korea, the country's leading cosmetic container maker, is expanding fastest: it bought land in April 2026 for a seventh plant, completed a fourth plant in November 2025, and is building fifth and sixth plants, lifting capacity from 652 million units in 2024 to a projected 828 million units in 2026.
Why this mattersA capacity-constrained container supply chain could cap how fast K-beauty brands can scale output, favouring incumbent packagers able to expand fast enough.
- Korea Kolmar's average monthly production rose from about 46.49 million units in 2024 to about 52.71 million in 2025 and about 61.25 million in the first half of 2026.
- Cosmax's monthly output is about 86 million units and is forecast to soon exceed 100 million.
- Pumtech Korea, the top domestic cosmetic container maker, bought land in April 2026 to expand a seventh plant.
- Pumtech Korea completed a fourth plant in November 2025 and is building fifth and sixth plants.
- Pumtech Korea's capacity is projected to grow from 652 million units in 2024 to 768 million in 2025 and 828 million in 2026.
- Dalba Global reported a shortage of sunscreen containers in the second quarter of 2026.
- Pumtech Korea built an injection-moulding line on the ground floor of Plant 6 to bring previously outsourced production in-house.
- Pumtech Korea secured a site for Plant 7, its next capacity expansion.
- Pumtech Korea raised tube prices from May 2026 and pump prices from June 2026 amid the container shortage.
- Affiliate Buguk TNC is completing a 30% year-on-year expansion of tube container capacity.