September 2, 2011

Where to Buy Asian Cosmetics? Where To Buy Japanese Cosmetics? Where to Buy Korean Cosmetics?

Ahhh a common question here on Musings!

Where do I buy Asian Cosmetics? Where do I buy Japanese Cosmetics? Where can I buy Korean Cosmetics?

Best place to start?

Imomoko.com

There are any number of great stores online to shop for goodies but one of my biggest recs has to go to Imomoko simply because it’s so reliable and carries and range of cosmetics, skincare, and general goodies from all over Asia. Japanese, Korean, Chinese, etc…you name it and they probably carry it.

They have a rotating inventory with new stock that comes in weekly, they offer free shipping with a minimal purchase, and they are extremely reliable. Whenever I order I get my products within 2-4 days via Priority Mail and they ship products out same day or next day at the latest. That’s another good thing about the E-shop, not having to wait for airmail or pay for expensive airmail shopping charges as the store is domestic, not international.

Imomoko carries popular Japanese brands like Lunasol, Majolica Majorca, Kose, etc…and brands from Taiwan as well like the popular My Beauty Diary Face Mask Collection.

Pricing varies as some products are very inexpensive and close to Asian retail where as other products are a bit higher up compared to what you’d pay in say Japan.

The shop doesn’t have a ton of Korean products but I noticed they recently started adding in products from Etude House!

Overall, I’ve always had a great shopping experience with the store and since I get alot of questions asking what a reliable source for Asian Beauty is I thought I’d recommend it.

It’s a good place to start if you’re new to the Asian Beauty scene!

Shop it at imomoko.com

If you’ve used to the store before do share your experiences with it!

Happy Haulin’!

Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with Imomoko.

46 Comments

About the Muse

Isabella MuseIsabella is just an average everyday geeky girl who doesn’t blend her eyeshadow correctly, wears too much blush, and hopes she never finds her holy grail products because she likes the thrill of the chase so much. Her mission is to bring you super honest reviews on makeup, skincare, fragrance and all things beauty. She’s in no way an expert on the topic and she sure as hell isn’t a super model. But she’s passionate about makeup and is seeking like-minded individuals that like pina coladas, getting caught in the rain, and ones that enjoy spending hundreds of dollars at Sephora without feeling buyer’s remorse. If you’re that person feel free to reach out and leave a comment or follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Bloglovin‘.

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Comments

    • the Muse

      Right now, (changes often), I really like Skin Food Gingka Green BB Cream also anything from Skin79 is amazing!

      • kiwikiwidragon

        Perry, you could try the Skin79 BB cream sampler, I am having good luck with it and you get several kinds to try for under $20.

  • Misato-san

    sigh, I want to ship over there too… my favourite waterproof mascara is a Kose one (with my beloved Ichiban as the cm person) and I miss it so much…

  • kiwikiwidragon

    I had a great experience with my very first order. I am in Florida and they ship from California I do believe. Items arrive lightning fast and in great shape. Everything was packed very well. I am bummed that I didn’t get those eyeliner stickers, I really wanted them for winged liner. I can never get it symmetrical or straight, lol. Hope fully she stocks them again. They were really cheap….

  • LK

    What’s cool about imomoko is that they have a really wide range of products and they also usually have the new and limited ones. But I would not suggest shopping at imomoko. Their prices are ridiculously high.

  • Irianne

    Very nice! By the way i bought Bioré Makeup remover, that you talked about here, and its really great, the only con, compared to Bi facil, is that it can not get into the eyes! Cause it burns!

  • Torontostar

    Muse are you Asian btw? Not that it matters because I love all things Asian, including cosmetics, but where did your Asian beauty interest spark? Let a girl know

    • the Muse

      nope Toronto just have a deep love of all things Asian ;-D food, culture, pop culture, makeup 😉 but I’m not Asian no. My first trip to Japan I hit up a drugstore and the romance began!

      • Valerie

        oops I think that where I got confused about your citizenship LOL Ok I love E.U blogger too!

  • Tohnia

    Hi Muse! For anybody in the Toronto/Markham/GTA area in Ontario Canada, there are quite a few options for in store purchases. Just thought i’d pass them on.

    T&T: My Beauty Diary masks, Japanese/Chinese hair dye, some facial cleansers.

    Foody Mart: some facial cleansers, assortment of sheet masks.

    Oriental Food Mart: JUST started carrying Dr. Jart and Missha!

    Pacific Mall: HOLY GRAIL! There are something like 20+ stores that carry BB creams, makeup, sheet masks, and face/body products. Also, a new store that just opened up on the main level that carries almost every line of Japanese and Korean BB Cream out there. They also carry alot of mascaras, and eye shadows. There is also a dollar store on the lower level by the main entrance (facing Steeles Ave) that carries sheet masks, pore strips, cleansers, and beauty aids (face scrubbies, hair brushes for hair type (!!), false lashes, eyelid tape, sponges…), and cheap makeup.

    Market Village (beside Pacific Mall): SASA carries high end cosmetics and skin care. There is also a small store that carries some sheet masks.

    Splendid China Towers (opposite Pacific Mall): last time I checked, there were only 2 or 3 stores that sold beauty products, but this was about 3 years ago. I rarely go here so I can’t tell you what’s in it.

    Chinatown (Spadina Ave.) Toronto: Dragon Centre has a variety of small stores that carry things like sheet masks, eyelid tape, sponges, and beauty and health aids like ear cleaners, scrubbies, and nail clippers. On the street, almost every store carries beauty aids and most grocery stores have a small selection of sheet masks. There are also a few stores that exclusively carry beauty products.

    Hope this helps for anybody who lives in the Toronto/GTA area and wants to find some Asian cosmetics! If you want to spend a day and just shop, I would recommend that you start at Pacific Mall, because that can take a whole day. It is also close to a T&T (up the street about 10 min drive – Warden & Steeles), and Oriental Food Mart (behind Pacific Mall – Kennedy & Denison, 5 min drive). And about a 15 min drive down Steeles, you can reach another T&T at Middlefield and Steeles.

    My best advice is to just wander around Pacific Mall, there are alot of beauty stores, and although alot of the items overlap (most of the stores are owned & operated by the same owners), there are some unique products that only that location will sell. Don’t write off the store because it looks the same as the other 5 you have already been to. Also check out the snack stores! They carry alot of Japanese and Chinese snacks that are hard to find outside of the internet. Case in point: Green Tea Sakura Kit Kat! 🙂 Pacific Village on the second floor is a great place to recharge and get a bite to eat (one of the stalls sells handmade noodles! You go at the right time and you can see the chef banging and stretching the dough for soup) and relax.

    Sorry for the novel, but I hope this helps some of my fellow Canadians! Happy shopping! ^-^

    • geekyn00b

      Sorry for my late reply, but thank you so much for taking the time to type all of that out for us! You’re so helpful, and I can’t wait to visit the Pacific Mall when I get back to Toronto.

      To add to your list, lat time I was there, Koreatown had a Laniege/Amore Pacifica store, and there was a cosmetics shop on the second floor of the PAT-mart… not much selection up there iirc, but the saleslady was awesome and I picked up a few sets.

      Muse, thanks for keeping your site going – I’m a long time reader and just love this spot <3

    • molly

      For Canadian~try beautemart.ca
      its a canada base online shopping for japanese and korean cosmetics.

      qucik shipping and no custom fee which is so great!!!

  • Chels

    I usually shop at AdamBeauty.com or SaSa and I have many Asian market around me but online shopping is more fun! Have you ever been to H Mart in Flushing? Love it there! I usually find Korean face masks there for $1.

    • the Muse

      adam is great chells ;-D wish he would update more often though he’s been kinda slow going lately! I have indeed! HMart is awesome ;-D I find interesting stuff there not to mention SNACKS!

  • Piscolabis

    Unfortunately they dont ship to europe (only to UK) so I can only buy using Ebay :S Btw thx for the info 🙂

  • Lin

    or you can try http://www.sasa.com. They have B&M stores at Honkong and Shanghai. I used to buy stuffs from their website before I came to Shanghai. They might not have that many Korean stuffs though. Plenty of Japanese skin care and make ups. I’m not sure about the price coz i’ve never compared them with other stores. It’s a pretty reliable website and many Asians buy from that place. btw, i’m not affiliated with that website either. 😀

      • Lin

        I used to buy products like Borghese mask and EL Lancome stuffs from them coz it’s cheaper there. Now that i’m here in U.S i figured it’s actually cheaper to get it in the mall haha! You know it’s so funny that the Asians are chasing after European brands and the you people are interested in Asian stuffs. teeheheheheheee…

  • Lena

    This site looks really promising, too bad they aren’t shipping to austria (yet) *crosses fingers*
    I’m getting tired of eBay-shopping 😡

  • Smirking Valet

    Muse, it’s because of you, I have such a love for Asian cosmetics!! I’m really dying to try Holika Holika, but I can’t find it anywhere except Ebay. Any suggestions?

  • Jonny

    Couldn’t agree more with your recommendations, Asia is good too ;-)…. In all seriousness my hotmail account has annoyingly been blocked so that would be why I have not replied if you emailed lol . Hope all is well babe.

    Lul

    Jonny xxx

    • the Muse

      hey mister how’d ya get locked out? I’m ok, tired, jet lagged, cranky…;-D to name a few ha! xoxo!

  • Valerie

    WHAT you are from Canada!!!! Everytime I read a blog with really cool product I always think they are from the states because it seems so easy to have product over there! I love to read from canadian bloggers because 1) the blog about stuff I can buy or 2) they blogg about stuff i can order! 😀
    By the way this website is just plain evil I want to buy everything in there!!!!
    I have a question for you eyeshadows from Lunasol how are they comparing Dior, Clarins and Guerlain???
    Thanks!

    • the Muse

      i’m not from Canada Valerie. I’m from US. I haven’t tried the Lunasol Palettes yet but will review soon! 🙂

  • Alexa

    I shop at http://www.webichi.com
    They always have great customer service and have such a wide variety of goods. They tend to have good sales but you have to keep your eye out for them. They often announce sales on their facebook or twitter!

  • Victoria

    Hello,

    I am about to buy from Asian web store but would like to know how much customs charge for USA?
    Thank you:)

  • Lisa

    Hi there
    I’m looking for dr Jart premium bb cream “� sold out at Sephora “� any ideas in locating this
    Thxs
    Love your reviews