Bitelab
Founded 2020 · 45 employees on LinkedIn · 3 known investors
Bitelab is a South Korean K-Beauty company that develops and sells haircare, skincare, and lifestyle brands aimed at consumers. Founded in 2020, it operates brands including a haircare line and a skincare line, with growing focus on overseas markets.
Also known as (주)바이트랩 · BiTELAB · 바이트랩
Investors · 3
Also in the syndicate · 2
Company profile
researched Aug 2026Bitelab (바이트랩, also written BiTELAB; corporate entity (주)바이트랩) is a South Korean brand commerce company founded in 2020 that develops and sells its own consumer brands across haircare, skincare and lifestyle categories. Its stated mission is to identify and supply the products customers actually need, and its stated vision is to build a globally recognised brand from a domestic base.
The company's flagship brand is lilyeve (릴리이브), a haircare line focused on scalp soothing, hair-damage care and hair-loss products, formulated with ingredients the company markets as Nano Exosome 3X and Peptasidil, and described as clinically tested and low-irritation. Other brands include Saekdong Seoul (색동서울), a skincare line combining traditional Korean natural ingredients with dermatological science around a proprietary ingredient called Pumpkintinol; Baruner / BARNER (바르너), a lifestyle and health-goods brand making ergonomic devices; and BOHORI (보호리), a pet brand. Bitelab is headquartered in Seoul, at 25 Teheran-ro 108-gil, Daechi-dong, Gangnam-gu.
In May 2026 Bitelab announced its first external funding round, KRW 10 billion, from venture firm Atinum Investment as financial investor and CJ Olive Young as strategic investor, with proceeds earmarked for next-generation product R&D, business infrastructure and hiring. The CEO is Yonghoon Cho.
Founding story
The company was founded in 2020 and, by its own account, went through repeated experimentation and trial and error while growing without outside investment for five years.
Business model
Bitelab designs, markets and sells its own portfolio of consumer product brands rather than third-party goods, spanning haircare, skincare, health/lifestyle devices and pet products, and distributes them through domestic retail and global e-commerce platforms.
Revenue comes from direct sales of the company's proprietary consumer brands through retail and online marketplace channels; the company operated without external capital for its first five years, financing growth from internal revenue.
Traction
Bitelab states average annual growth of about two times since founding, with consolidated 2025 revenue of roughly KRW 60 billion (about US$40-41 million) and a target of KRW 100 billion in revenue by 2026. Its overseas division, started in June 2024, is described as growing more than eight times a year on average and expanding into around 50 countries in 18 months, with top rankings on Olive Young, Amazon, TikTok Shop and Qoo10 within months of entry. lilyeve won first place in Olive Young's haircare category.
Latest developments
In May 2026 Bitelab announced a KRW 10 billion (about US$6.7-6.9 million) first external funding round from Atinum Investment and CJ Olive Young, to be used for R&D on next-generation products, business infrastructure and hiring of more than 30 additional employees in Korea and overseas by the second half of 2026.
▸Full profile — market position, technology, go-to-market, geography, history
Market position
Bitelab positions itself as a K-beauty brand builder aiming for a global top-10 K-beauty brand, with lilyeve ranked first in Olive Young's haircare category and holding notable placement in Amazon's US haircare category; the company frames haircare as the next major K-beauty category after skincare.
The company builds and owns its brands end to end, relies on proprietary ingredient claims backed by clinical testing, and grew for five years on internally generated revenue before taking outside capital, with a team drawn from unicorn and AI startups, strategy consulting, large corporates and media commerce.
Technology
Product differentiation rests on proprietary formulations and ingredients, including Nano Exosome 3X and Peptasidil in lilyeve haircare products and Pumpkintinol in Saekdong Seoul skincare, with lilyeve products described as clinically validated and low-irritation.
Go-to-market
Bitelab sells through the Korean H&B retailer Olive Young and through global beauty and e-commerce platforms including Amazon, TikTok Shop and Qoo10, supported by viral and influencer-led social marketing run by market-specific teams (for example a Japan team), alongside offline activity in overseas markets.
Retail consumers seeking haircare (scalp and hair-damage care, hair-loss products), skincare, ergonomic health and lifestyle goods, and pet products, in Korea and in overseas markets including the United States, Japan, Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
Geography
Headquartered in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, South Korea, with an overseas business division covering the United States, Japan and Europe; the company states it has entered approximately 50 countries, and lilyeve is sold in North American, Asian and Middle Eastern markets.
History
Founded in 2020, Bitelab built its haircare brand lilyeve into a domestic success, winning the top position in Olive Young's haircare category, and later added the skincare brand Saekdong Seoul, the lifestyle/health brand Baruner and the pet brand BOHORI. An overseas business division was launched in June 2024, after which the company says international operations grew rapidly and reached roughly 50 countries within a year and a half. In May 2026 the company closed its first external funding round.
Compiled by commissioned research from 8 cited public sources — announcements, filings, and press listed under research sources below.
Key figures
latest reportedCompany-reported or press-reported figures, each dated to when it was claimed — not independently audited.
Timeline · 3
launches, deals, and filingsBitelab announced its first external funding since its 2020 founding: KRW 10 billion (reported as US$6.68-6.9 million), with Atinum Investment as financial investor and CJ Olive Young as strategic investor. Proceeds are for new product R&D, business infrastructure and hiring.
$6.9M source ↗
The company's haircare brand lilyeve is described as having won the number one position in Olive Young's haircare category.
Bitelab established an overseas business division covering the United States, Japan and Europe, which it says grew more than eightfold annually and entered about 50 countries within a year and a half.
Dated company events from announcements, filings, and press; legal rows summarize public dockets and regulator releases.
▸Research sources · 8
primary sources listed
- Bitelabbitelab.co.kr · web
8 public sources were cited for this profile; the first-party ones are listed here.
Frequently asked questions
- What does Bitelab do?
- Bitelab is a Korean K-beauty brand builder operating haircare, skincare, lifestyle and pet brands in Korea and abroad.
- Who are Bitelab's investors?
- Bitelab's investors include Atinum Investment Co. Ltd..