Kylie Jenner’s viral beauty tool turns founder into a billionaire

A 15 second video clip of Kylie Jenner using a sleek silver device called the Booster Pro went viral and it did more than rack up views. It catapulted a Korean beauty startup into global fame. The device which was designed to help skin “absorb serums more effectively,” belongs to APR Corp. It's a Seoul-based company now valued at over US$4 billion.

Kylie Jenner’s 15 second TikTok of Booster Pro changed everything for the company

At the heart of the rise for this viral product is founder Kim Byung Hoon, 36, who now holds the title of South Korea’s newest billionaire. His 31% stake in APR is worth about US$1.3 billion (≈ RM5.51 billion) after the company’s shares surged 200% this year. Since going public last year, APR has become the second-largest listed beauty firm in South Korea, riding on the global K-beauty wave. “Now it feels that K-beauty has reached the stage where it’s spreading from early adopters to mass-market consumers,” Kim Byung said in an earlier interview.

Influencer buzz has also been the main key for the virality of the product. Hailey Bieber posted unprompted about APR’s gel mask in late 2023, while Kylie Jenner, Kendall Jenner, and Khloé Kardashian all joined its global campaigns in 2024. TikTok campaigns and sleek beauty tech devices have given APR an edge, drawing in customers outside traditional duty-free shops.

Currently, more than 70% of APR sales are being generated from overseas. US remains its biggest market as of yet in 2025. Still, challenges loom with US tariffs of 10% on imported beauty goods, along with trade tensions which could affect growth. Yet Kim seems unfazed. He recently bought a record-breaking 29 billion won (≈ US$21 million) penthouse in Seoul. He is continuing to work daily at APR and keep a check on trends and strategizing with his team. “If someone asks me what my career goal is, I’d say now I want to make a big company everyone knows. Like Apple, we want to introduce products that would make us the most innovative company in the beauty industry," Kim noted.

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