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Makemake, a beauty startup addressing hair and skin damage caused by residual chlorine in swimming pools, has raised 3.5 billion won (approximately $2.6 million) in a pre-Series A round. South Korea’s Amorepacific, Signite, and IgniteXL joined as new investors, while existing seed investor and deep-tech accelerator Bluepoint Partners participated in a follow-on investment. Makemake operates the swim-care brand SOOO and the scalp-care line Scalpture, and has demonstrated overseas competitiveness by exporting 50,000 products to the South American market this year. The company plans to use the funding to advance its core technology and enter the North American market, with future expansion into scalp and hair care as well as beauty-tech devices.
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Makemake, a beauty startup that uses technology to address hair and skin damage caused by residual chlorine in swimming pools, announced on the 23rd that it has raised 3.5 billion won (approximately $2.6 million) in a pre-Series A round. South Korea’s Amorepacific (090430), along with Signite and IgniteXL, joined as new investors in this round, while Bluepoint Partners, a deep-tech accelerator and existing seed investor, added strength through a follow-on investment.
Makemake is the company behind SOOO, a global water-stress solution beauty brand. It entered the market with premium swim-care products that remove chlorine residue from hair and skin after swimming, and has since expanded its product lineup with the launch of the scalp-care line Scalpture. The company explained that this fundraising was focused not merely on securing capital, but on building a foundation for business expansion through a strategic investor base with beauty industry expertise and global networks.
The investment community is paying particular attention to Amorepacific’s participation. The fact that one of South Korea’s leading cosmetics companies has invested in a startup that began in the niche swimming market is seen as a strategic move confirming the potential to extend materials and product technologies validated in swim care into the broader scalp and hair care market. Given that Makemake plans to expand into beauty-tech devices, analysts note the investment also carries significance in terms of securing technology beyond the traditional cosmetics domain.
Makemake’s competitive edge lies in its proprietary water-quality response technology and patent-based materials. The company is not stopping at solving pool chlorine issues but is broadening the application of its technology to beauty problems arising from various water environments, including hard water and metal ions. In fact, it has demonstrated overseas market competitiveness by exporting 50,000 products to the South American market alone since beginning its first exports this year. Signing a distribution agreement with global beauty distributor Silicon2 is also part of its efforts to expand overseas sales channels.
External validation of its product quality continues as well. SOOO won the top prize in the hair care category at Cosmoprof Asia 2025, one of the world’s three largest beauty exhibitions, and also took the grand prize at Shanghai K-Beauty Glow Week. A brand that started in the niche swimming market has effectively earned recognition for its technology in the mainstream beauty market.
The company plans to invest the funding in advancing its core materials and product technologies while accelerating its entry into the North American market. Its vision is to grow from swim care into scalp and hair care and beauty-tech devices, becoming a platform that addresses a broad range of water-related beauty concerns.
Hyoseop Kwak, CEO of Makemake, said, “This investment is significant not so much for the capital raised, but for securing strategic partners who will build SOOO’s global growth together with us. Leveraging the industry expertise and global networks of each investor, we will grow into a global beauty-tech company that solves various water-related beauty problems through technology.”
The exact valuation of this pre-Series A round was not disclosed. However, the fact that a major strategic investor like Amorepacific joined at an early stage is interpreted as a signal of market confidence in Makemake’s technology and growth potential. Amid intensifying competition in the conventional cosmetics market, the industry’s attention is focused on the fact that strategic investment has flowed into functional beauty technology targeting problems arising from “water” in everyday living environments.
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