eBay Japan CEO Koo Ja-hyun (eBay Japan)
eBay Japan said Monday it held the “2026 Qoo10 Japan Mega Debut Awards” to mark the first anniversary of its Mega Debut program and unveil future strategies.
The company launched the Mega Debut initiative in April 2025 to discover and support emerging beauty brands, following its announcement at the “2025 Qoo10 Japan K-Beauty Mega Conference” in Seoul to foster 200 indie K-beauty brands.
Through the program, new brands have been introduced to Japanese consumers on a weekly basis, with comprehensive marketing support provided from the prelaunch stage to help lesser-known brands quickly gain traction.
As of the first week of April this year, 200 brands had been selected and supported, with Korean brands accounting for 94 percent. In the K-beauty segment alone, cumulative sales reached $21 million, while 48 brands posted quarterly sales exceeding $63,000.
At the event, eBay Japan awarded 11 brands that delivered outstanding performance over the past year. Notably, nine of the winners were K-beauty brands, highlighting their growing competitiveness in Japan’s beauty market.
For the program’s second year, the company plans to scale up. While Mega Debut focuses on rookie brands, it will newly launch “Incubation” for rising brands and “Mega Collaboration” for star-level brands.
Under the Incubation program, 150 brands will receive intensive support over a three-month period. Through Mega Collaboration, a select group of 50 brands will take part in close partnership promotions, including exclusive live commerce broadcasts and dedicated promotional campaigns.
The company said it would extend brand exposure periods from seven days to 14 days and increase the number of featured brands each week from four to six. It also aims to maximize visibility by strengthening links with Qoo10 Japan’s flagship “Mega Sale” promotions.
jwjeon7625@heraldcorp.com