AJ Cosmetics

I love, love, love Korean cosmetics and skin care! I saw a tiny picture on Hana World Market’s website that featured a History of Whoo display, and I knew I was going to have to make the trek up north to check it out. Whoo is kind of like the Chantecaille or Cle de Peau of Korea, but with way more luxurious packaging. It’s among the most expensive Korean beauty lines, along with Sulwhasoo, and uses interesting herbal ingredients to soften, brighten, and rejuvenate the skin. Like its previously mentioned western counterparts, Whoo is aimed at the discerning, likely more mature clientele that appreciates the ritual of beauty and has serious cash to burn. I wasn’t ready to spend that much money on my first trip into the store, but looking at those beautiful bottles was really tempting, and they would really jazz up my bathroom counter.
When I arrived at Hana, I discovered that AJ Cosmetics, the impressive beauty counter inside the supermarket, had moved a little ways down Parmer into its own shop. As of January 6^th, it had apparently been open for 4 days. Sheet masks and lip gloss and whitening essences, oh my! There is so much to discover! I was a bit overwhelmed at all of the neat stuff. I saw many, many skin care and cosmetic brands, some familiar and some not: Dr. Jart, Whoo, Isa Knox, Carezone, IPKN, and many, many more!
AJ, the proprietress, was just lovely and so helpful. She was happy to demonstrate everything that caught my eye, and wasn’t in the least bit pushy. She let me have my space to look around and explore, but also was great about answering questions and showing me everything I asked about. I’m pretty well stocked for makeup and skin care, but I have zero self control so I settled on a bunch of sheet masks and a foot mask. I asked about a whitening essence for my spotty skin, and AJ threw in samples of the Isa Knox White Active Serum, promising it would soften and even my skin. She somehow managed to do that without making me feel self conscious, and I really appreciate the samples, rather than pushing a full sized product right away. I’ve fallen in love with many products via samples, so if I like the results, I’ll definitely be coming back for the full size.
The only improvement I could wish for is for the store to carry more fun, cute, and/​or mainstream brands like Tony Moly, Skin Food, Innisfree, Missha, etc. However, the store has only been open for 4 days, so it may very well pick up different products. I really want to get the word out about this place, because Austin lacks the amazing selection of Asian beauty products that cities like Houston, LA, and NYC are so great for, and I feel like maybe we’re on the map now!
I should mention that when I went by, they were still getting their credit card system set up, so cash should definitely be a backup plan, at least while the store is new.
They apparently also do facials there, and if AJ’s (luminous, dewy) skin is any indication of what to expect, well sign me up!