Dongkook Pharmaceutical Co. (086450.KS) is pushing to change its name to DK Centellian, as it seeks to widen its business from treatment and prevention into health and beauty while stepping up its push into global markets.
The company said its board approved the proposed name change at a meeting on the 12th. It plans to put a partial charter amendment for the renaming to a vote at an extraordinary shareholders meeting on Nov. 27.
The new name reflects a plan to expand into health and beauty on the strength of expertise built in the pharmaceutical business. The company said "DK" stands for its 58-year history and scientific credibility, while "Centellian" signals its commitment to creating new value on the basis of accumulated expertise. It also set out a vision of growing into a science-based health and beauty company.
Dongkook Pharmaceutical Co. has been expanding its cosmetics business through Centellian24, a dermocosmetics brand. Launched in 2015, Centellian24 sells products including Madeca Cream, which uses titrated extract of Centella asiatica (TECA), a compound derived from the centella plant, as well as Mela Capture for dark spots and a line of PDRN products. Madeca Cream in particular has kept growing, with cumulative sales topping 100 million units as of July this year.
The company is also widening its overseas distribution. In May this year, Centellian24 entered 1,400 stores of U.S. beauty retailer Ulta Beauty, and it is expanding product sales on online channels including Amazon and TikTok Shop. In Japan, it is increasing offline supply through major retailers such as Don Quijote, Loft and Matsumotokiyoshi.
"We are pursuing the name change to meet customers around the world in a broader business area that spans health and beauty as well as prevention and treatment," an official at Dongkook Pharmaceutical Co. said.