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Manila Bulletin devider World devider White House press secretary goes K-beauty shopping, shares haul on Instagram

White House press secretary goes K-beauty shopping, shares haul on Instagram

Published Oct 30, 2025 10:43 am
Korean skin care products shared by White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, left, on her Instagram story Wednesday evening during her visit to Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, for the APEC summit. (Captured from Karoline Leavitt's Instagram)
Korean skin care products shared by White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, left, on her Instagram story Wednesday evening during her visit to Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, for the APEC summit. (Captured from Karoline Leavitt's Instagram)
By Jane Han
The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit may be about diplomacy, but even high-level politics leaves room for a little skin care.
Karoline Leavitt, the 28-year-old White House press secretary traveling with U.S. President Donald Trump to Gyeongju, offered a glimpse of her personal discovery Wednesday night when she posted an Instagram story showing a neat spread of Korean beauty products.
“South Korea skincare finds,” she wrote with a heart emoji, alongside 12 items ranging from sheet masks and pore pads to glow serum, cleansing oil and sunscreen — all staples of the famed K-beauty routine.
Among the products were several brands that have already gained a strong following in the United States.
Beauty of Joseon, the Seoul label behind the viral “Relief Sun” and “Glow Serum,” has taken TikTok by storm with more than a billion views under its hashtag. Medicube, the sleek clinical-style brand behind the red Zero Pore Pad, has built a loyal following online and routinely lands on Amazon’s bestseller lists. And Mediheal, best known for its hydrating sheet masks, was one of the first Korean skin care names to hit U.S. drugstore shelves, helping introduce K-beauty to the mainstream years ago.
Leavitt didn’t mention where she bought them, but a few had “Olive Young exclusive” stickers, pointing to Korea’s ubiquitous health and beauty chain.
Her post landed just as Gyeongju welcomed the APEC “K-Beauty Pavilion,” where visiting delegates and tourists are sampling the latest in Korean cosmetics through the end of the summit.

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