Asian retail platforms are taking US mall space.
Olive Young, Korea's dominant beauty retailer, opened its first US store in Pasadena on May 29 and its second at Westfield Century City on June 13. In fall 2026, Sephora debuts its Olive Young partnership with a dedicated K-beauty zone online and in US stores, per the company's announcement. Kiokii, the Asian beauty retailer that opened its first US store at American Dream, is preparing its second at Mall of America. And POP MART is listed as coming soon at King of Prussia, with local reporting placing the opening before the end of 2026.
Asian retailers are entering the US through physical platforms that control assortment, discovery, services and the pipeline behind the shelf.
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The platform enters through three formats.
Olive Young K-beauty Festival.
K-beauty is entering US physical retail through three formats at once. Olive Young holds standalone space: 8,647 square feet in Pasadena, followed fifteen days later by a second store at Westfield Century City, per CJ Newsroom. Sephora says its Olive Young partnership will debut in fall 2026 with a dedicated K-beauty zone online and in US stores. Kiokii is scaling the multi-brand specialist format from American Dream to a nearly 7,000 square foot location at Mall of America, which the operator calls the first in Minnesota and the second in the country.
These formats do not create the same landlord relationship. Olive Young and Kiokii are tenants. The Olive Young zone operates inside Sephora's existing retail channel. What they share is control over curation, services and the pipeline of brands behind the assortment.
For landlords, a specialist operator can bring multiple labels into one unit rather than require a separate lease for every brand. For Sephora, the partnership adds the same category expertise inside an existing store network.
POP MART adds another transaction.
POP MART opened a flagship at Resorts World Sentosa.
The US pipeline first: POP MART is marked as coming soon on Simon's King of Prussia directory, and the Philadelphia Inquirer places the opening before the end of 2026. The King of Prussia store is confirmed. The bakery format is not.
The bakery is what makes the brand worth watching. In late July 2026, POP MART opened a flagship at Resorts World Sentosa together with POP BAKERY, its first themed cafe in Southeast Asia: a permanent character space, seasonal programming and themed desserts built around the same IP that sells the collectibles, per the company's announcement. One fandom can now spend across collectibles, food and programmed experiences, and the format is designed to extend the visit beyond a collectible purchase.
An IP platform monetizes the same character across retail, food and events. Each added transaction is another reason to return.
BLUESPACE turns market entry into a shared format.
BLUESPACE, Shenzhen.
Bluebell Group unveiled the first BLUESPACE in Shenzhen on July 28: skincare, fragrance, collectibles and gifting combined in one operator-controlled multi-brand boutique. Bluebell describes the format as a low-risk platform for brand partners entering the Chinese premium market, per Moodie Davitt Report.
For a landlord, the format can consolidate several niche labels under one operator rather than require separate mono-brand commitments. For brands, it creates a lower-risk environment for testing demand before standalone expansion. The format does not confirm a path into standalone stores, but it creates the conditions for one.
Sephora aggregates global beauty demand. Kiokii and Olive Young concentrate Korean expertise. Bluebell gives multiple brands a shared route into the market.
What we're watching
→ PURESEOUL, St James Quarter, Edinburgh. The Korean beauty specialist is scheduled to open its first Scottish store in late August 2026, following Sephora's July 9 debut at the same destination. The exact opening date and unit remain to be confirmed.
→ MAC Store of the Future, Lotte World Mall, Seoul. The flagship opened on July 13, according to multiple Korean reports carrying details supplied by MAC. Watching for official rollout guidance.
→ Tim Ho Wan, Taiwan. Jollibee Group plans to double the network from 16 to 32 restaurants by 2030, with a new store format. Watching the format specification and location mix.
→ Mastercard Taste by Priceless, Hong Kong. The airport dining club turns a card benefit into permanent hospitality and joins an existing location in Sao Paulo. Watching which airports follow.
Olive Young opened two Southern California stores fifteen days apart. Sephora is bringing Olive Young's curation into its own US channel. POP MART is confirmed for King of Prussia. None of these formats uses physical space only to display a product line.
The underwriting question changes with them. Leasing teams should evaluate the operating platform behind the store, not only the sales density of its current assortment: who controls the assortment, customer data, services, programming and the next brands the space can carry.
The tenant leases the space. The platform runs the category.
Mati Brooks,
Editor, Malls Money
Malls.com tracks malls, brands, store openings, and retail expansion signals across 50+ countries.