About DermaLab Seoul

We are the ones who read the label.

DermaLab Seoul is an independent shop in South Korea. We don't manufacture anything. We choose what to carry, buy it here, and write the page you were just reading.

That last part is the actual work.

What happens to a product before it goes on this site

We type out the ingredient list from the box. The full INCI list, in its printed order, not a marketing summary of it. On a Korean product that list is often the most honest document in the package, and it is usually the first thing lost when the product is resold abroad. 147 of our 161 product pages carry the complete list; the remaining ones carry the list exactly as the manufacturer supplied it to us, and say so.

We translate it into ordinary English. Butyrospermum Parkii Butter is shea butter. Betaine Salicylate is a gentler BHA. You should not need a chemistry degree to know what you are putting on your face, and you should not have to take our word for it either — the original name stays on the page next to the translation, so you can check us.

We tell you where an ingredient actually sits. Cosmetic ingredient lists run in descending order by weight down to 1%. So when a page says niacinamide is sixth of sixty-two, that is a fact you can verify against the box, and it means something quite different from "contains niacinamide." A hero ingredient printed in large type on the front can sit near the bottom of the list on the back. We say when it does.

We write down what would stop us buying it. 43 of our product pages carry a line called Worth checking before you buy. Fragrance high on the list. Denatured alcohol. A famous ingredient that turns out to be at position 24. If it is on the label, it goes on the page — including when it costs us the sale. A shop that only ever tells you good news is not telling you anything.

What we don't do

We don't write reviews. This shop is new and has no reviews of its own yet. Rather than manufacture some, we cite the aggregate rating and review count from Olive Young Global where the identical product is sold there, name the source, and link to it. We never copy anyone's review text, and we never put a borrowed rating into the structured data that search engines read — those numbers are not ours to present as ours. When we have our own reviews, they will be labelled as ours.

We don't say a product treats anything. Cosmetics are cosmetics. If a page tells you what a product does, it is describing texture, finish, hydration, or what is measurably in the bottle — not a medical outcome. Where a manufacturer has published a clinical claim, we attribute it to the manufacturer instead of adopting it as our own.

We don't use "clean," "chemical-free," or "non-toxic." None of those words has a fixed meaning, and all of them work by implying the alternative is dangerous. We would rather show you the list.

Why buy from Korea instead of a local shelf

Two honest reasons. Range: a great deal of what is made here is never exported, or arrives a year late and repackaged. Price: buying at source removes a layer. And one honest cost — a parcel from Korea takes longer than a domestic one, and our shipping policy gives you the real numbers rather than optimistic ones.

If we get something wrong

Reading labels for a living means occasionally misreading one. If you think a position, a translation, or a disclosure on any page is wrong, write to us at gusdker@gmail.com and tell us which product. We will check it against the box, correct the page, and say on the page that we corrected it.

For orders and delivery, our shipping policy and returns policy carry the actual numbers.