Who Owns Anua? The Founders, the Korean Company Behind the Heartleaf 77 Toner
Anua is Korean. Its parent, The Founders (더파운더즈), is 100% owned by its two co-CEOs, per its DART audit report. Revenue rose from ₩57.6 billion in 2022 to ₩717.7 billion in 2025, and the toner is made by Kolmar Korea.
From the brand's official Amazon store: Anua Heartleaf 77 Soothing Toner, 250mlAffiliate link. As an Amazon Associate, EpicKor earns from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.
Quick Answer
Who owns Anua? The Founders Inc. (주식회사 더파운더즈), an unlisted Korean company based in Parnas Tower on Teheran-ro, Gangnam-gu, Seoul. Its two co-CEOs, Lee Sun-hyung (이선형, "Yi Seonhyeong" in the company's English releases**)** and Lee Chang-ju (이창주), own 100% of its shares. That is what the first note of the company's audited 2025 accounts on DART, Korea's corporate disclosure system, says.
Is Anua Korean? Yes. The brand, the parent company and the two owners are Korean. The products we checked are made in Korea by Korean contract manufacturers. Kolmar Korea makes the Heartleaf 77 toner, according to the official Korean product notice.
How big is it? The Founders had consolidated revenue of ₩717.7 billion in 2025 (about $505 million) and an operating profit of ₩129.5 billion (about $91 million). In 2022 its revenue was ₩57.6 billion.
Has anyone bought it? No. No investor holds shares. The company has not taken outside equity. In 2025 it borrowed ₩80 billion from a state-owned bank instead.
This is a public-information company spotlight. EpicKor has no relationship with The Founders or Anua, and nothing here is investment advice. Won figures come from the company's audit reports unless a press source is named. Dollar figures use ₩1,421 to the dollar, the 2025 average of the US Federal Reserve's daily KRW/USD rate (FRED series DEXKOUS), and are rounded.
Quick Guide: The Founders At A Glance
| Item | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Official name | The Founders Inc. (주식회사 더파운더즈) | DART; Anua Korean store footer |
| Main brand | Anua (아누아), launched about two years after the company was founded | Hankyung Business, May 2025 |
| Other brands | Fromlabs (프롬랩스, hair care) and Project21 (프로젝트21, pet products) | Hankyung Business; Cosmorning |
| Incorporated | 30 May 2017 | 2025 consolidated audit report, note 1 |
| Head office | 521 Teheran-ro (Parnas Tower), Samseong-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul | Audit report; Anua Korean store |
| CEOs | Lee Sun-hyung (이선형) and Lee Chang-ju (이창주), co-CEOs | Audit report |
| Owners | The two co-CEOs, 100% of 1,002,800 shares | 2025 audit report, note 1 |
| Listed? | No | DART (audit reports only) |
| Auditor | Samjong KPMG (삼정회계법인) | DART |
| 2025 revenue | ₩717.7 billion (about $505 million), consolidated | 2025 consolidated audit report |
| Overseas share | 85% of 2024 revenue (₩364.4 billion) | Hankyung Business, May 2025 |
| Factories | None. Products are made by Korean contract manufacturers | Anua Korean store product notices |
ANUA Gentle Soothing Starter Duo — the toner plus a serum, in one box If you came here to check whether Anua is a real Korean brand before buying, this set is the lower-commitment way to try the heartleaf toner. It is sold through the ANUA store on Amazon, which matters because lookalike heartleaf toners sit next to its listings. Check the current price on the listing. As an Amazon Associate, EpicKor earns from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.
See the Anua Starter Duo on AmazonWho Owns The Shares
The answer sits in one sentence in note 1 of The Founders' 2025 consolidated audit report:
"당기말 현재 지배기업의 발행주식수는 1,002,800주, 자본금은 100,280천원으로 각자 대표이사 2인이 100% 소유하고 있습니다."
At the end of the year the parent had 1,002,800 shares in issue and share capital of ₩100.28 million, 100% owned by its two co-CEOs.
The report does not say how the shares are split between the two men. No public filing we found does. So "100% between them" is the precise answer, and any 50/50 figure you see elsewhere is a guess.
Three more details from the filings:
- The shareholder base has been closed for years. The FY2023 report says the CEO side ("대표이사") owned 100% of 1,000,000 shares. In 2024, 2,800 new shares were issued when stock options were exercised for about ₩168 million, yet the FY2024 and FY2025 reports both say the two co-CEOs owned 100% of all 1,002,800 shares at year-end.
- There is no venture capital on the register. That is unusual for a company this size. Biodance's parent has a venture investor with a board seat. Goodai Global sold ₩800 billion of convertible bonds to private-equity funds. The Founders funded its growth from its own profits and, in 2025, from bank loans.
- Management personally guarantees the company's bank lines. The related-party note lists joint guarantees by "주요 경영진" (key management) of ₩96 billion to Korea Development Bank and ₩7.08 billion to Shinhan Bank.
So the plain answer is: Anua is owned by the two Korean co-founders who run it. It has not been sold to a larger group, Korean or foreign. On 16 October 2026 we found no DART filing showing a change of control.
How The Founders Started
The early history comes from Korean press, mainly Dealsite (October 2025) and Hankyung Business (May 2025). Treat the dates before the first audited year as the press's account.
| When | What happened | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Before 2017 | Lee Sun-hyung (economics) and Lee Chang-ju (anthropology), both born in 1988, run a start-up club together at university. Hankyung Business names Seoul National University | Dealsite; Hankyung Business |
| 30 May 2017 | The Founders Inc. is incorporated. The first business is pet products, starting with cat food; the pet brand today is Project21 | Audit report; Dealsite |
| About 2019 | Anua launches as a skincare brand built on heartleaf (어성초, eoseongcho) | Hankyung Business |
| 2021 | Revenue ₩29.9 billion (unaudited comparative figure) | FY2022 audit report |
| 2022 | Revenue ₩57.6 billion, the first audited year | FY2022 audit report |
| 2023 | Revenue ₩143.2 billion | FY2023 audit report |
| 2024 | Revenue ₩427.8 billion, 85% of it overseas. The press reports No. 1 in TikTok Shop US beauty and a "$50 million export tower" government award at the end of 2024 | Audit report; Hankyung Business; Hankyung; Dealsite |
| 31 March 2025 | Merges its subsidiary TF Retail (티에프리테일) into the parent | 2025 audit report, note 23 |
| 2025 | Revenue ₩717.7 billion. Sets up ANUA RUS LLC, ANUA HK Limited and TF S&D (티에프에스앤디) | 2025 audit report, note 5 |
| June 2026 | Names Kendall Jenner its first global brand ambassador. She follows actress Suzy (수지), an earlier Anua model | Hankyung, 1 June 2026 |
The pet start still shows in the paperwork. The audit report describes the company's business as "화장품과 애완용품의 제조와 판매 및 전자상거래업": making and selling cosmetics and pet products, plus e-commerce. In practice the business is now Anua. The company told Hankyung Business that Anua was about 95% of total revenue in 2024.
The Numbers: ₩57.6 Billion To ₩717.7 Billion In Three Years
The 2022 to 2024 figures are the company's separate accounts. The 2025 figures are consolidated, because 2025 was the first year The Founders had to consolidate its US subsidiary, Anua, Inc. The two bases are close: 2025 separate revenue was ₩715.6 billion.
| Year | Revenue | Operating profit | Net profit | Operating margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | ₩57.6 billion ($41M) | ₩9.4 billion ($7M) | ₩9.5 billion ($7M) | 16.3% |
| 2023 | ₩143.2 billion ($101M) | ₩40.0 billion ($28M) | ₩31.7 billion ($22M) | 27.9% |
| 2024 | ₩427.8 billion ($301M) | ₩145.7 billion ($103M) | ₩116.5 billion ($82M) | 34.1% |
| 2025 | ₩717.7 billion ($505M) | ₩129.5 billion ($91M) | ₩86.6 billion ($61M) | 18.0% |
Revenue grew about 12 times from 2022 to 2025. But 2025 is the first year in which profit fell while revenue rose by 68%. The gross margin barely moved (71.9% in 2024, 71.7% in 2025), so the products did not get cheaper to make. The difference is in selling costs:
| Cost line | 2025 | 2024 | Share of 2025 revenue | Share of 2024 revenue |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Advertising (광고선전비) | ₩118.0 billion | ₩45.2 billion | 16.4% | 10.6% |
| Export costs (수출제비용) | ₩85.0 billion | ₩48.3 billion | 11.8% | 11.3% |
| Salaries (급여) | ₩86.6 billion | ₩14.9 billion | 12.1% | 3.5% |
| Sales commissions (판매수수료) | ₩41.2 billion | ₩26.9 billion | 5.7% | 6.3% |
| Logistics (물류비) | ₩19.0 billion | ₩7.3 billion | 2.6% | 1.7% |
| All selling and admin costs | ₩384.7 billion | ₩162.0 billion | 53.6% | 37.9% |
Two lines explain most of the change. Advertising grew 2.6 times in a year when Anua expanded from the US and Japan into Europe and other new markets. Salaries grew almost six times. It is not a consolidation effect: the separate accounts show the same ₩86.6 billion. The company told Cosmorning it hired about 200 people in 2025. The report does not break the salary line down further. It also shows ₩22.8 billion of long-term accrued expenses that did not exist a year earlier, without saying what they are for.
The balance sheet is still strong. At the end of 2025 The Founders held ₩132.4 billion in cash and ₩75.0 billion in short-term trading securities. That is more than its total borrowings. Total assets doubled to ₩448.6 billion.
The Loans: ₩80 Billion From A State Bank
The Founders had repaid its earlier bank loans (₩4.8 billion at the end of 2022) during 2023 and had no borrowings at the end of 2023 or 2024. In 2025 it drew ₩80 billion (about $56 million) in short-term working-capital loans from Korea Development Bank (한국산업은행), a state-owned policy bank, at interest rates of 3.24% and 4.52%. Liabilities rose from 37% to 84.5% of equity.
The audit report also shows money going the other way. At the end of 2025 the company had lent ₩15.97 billion to "key management". Of that, ₩10.97 billion was a loan inherited when TF Retail was merged in, and ₩5 billion was new in 2025. The company booked ₩715 million of interest income on these loans. The loans are disclosed in the related-party note of the audited accounts, and the company charged interest on them. The report does not give their terms or purpose.
Dividends: The Founders paid a ₩10 billion dividend with a record date of 4 January 2024, all of it to the two owners. The FY2025 cash-flow statement shows no dividend paid in 2025.
Where Anua Is Made
The Founders does not own a factory. Its property, plant and equipment was worth only ₩4.3 billion at the end of 2025, mostly office fit-out. Anua's products are made by Korean contract manufacturers (ODMs). The Korean product notice on Anua's official store must name the manufacturer (화장품제조업자). We checked five products on 16 October 2026:
| Product | Manufacturer (제조업자) | Country | Korean store price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Heartleaf 77 Hyaluron Soothing Toner, 250 mL (어성초 77 히알루론산 수분 진정 토너) | Kolmar Korea (한국콜마) | Korea | ₩20,000 |
| Heartleaf Pore Control Cleansing Oil (어성초 포어 컨트롤 클렌징오일) | Cosmecca Korea (코스메카코리아) | Korea | ₩17,000 |
| Heartleaf 77 Clear Pad (어성초 77 클리어 패드) | Cosmecca Korea | Korea | ₩19,200 |
| PDRN Hyaluronic Acid Capsule 100 Serum, 30 mL | CNF (씨엔에프) | Korea | ₩22,500 |
| PDRN Hyaluronic Acid Capsule Mist, 100 mL | Cosmax (코스맥스) | Korea | ₩29,000 |
The Founders is listed as the responsible seller (화장품책임판매업자) on each one. Store prices change with promotions, so treat them as what the store showed on 16 October 2026, not list prices.
This is the standard model for the new generation of K-beauty brands. Kolmar Korea and Cosmax are two of Korea's largest cosmetics ODMs and make products for many brands. A brand like Anua designs the product, owns the trademark and the customer, and pays the ODM to make it. Torriden and Biodance work the same way. APR, which built its own device plant, is the exception.
For a buyer, the important fact is the country, and the answer is Korea. "Made by Kolmar Korea" does not make the toner a Kolmar product. The formula and brand belong to The Founders.
Where It Sells
The Founders does not publish a country breakdown in its audit report. What the filings and the press do show:
- Overseas is most of the business. Hankyung Business reported that 85% of 2024 revenue, ₩364.4 billion, came from abroad. Dealsite put Anua's overseas share at 80–90%.
- The US is the biggest market. Anua's June 2026 press release calls the US its largest market and says it is sold in more than 20,000 US stores, and FashionNetwork reported nationwide distribution at Ulta Beauty. The company says it was named an Amazon Top Brand in 2024 and 2025.
- Japan runs through Qoo10. Cosmorning reported that Anua ranked first in cumulative sales in four consecutive Qoo10 Japan "Mega Wari" sales events. The audit report lists a Japanese subsidiary, The Founders JAPAN.
- Own subsidiaries in the US, Japan, Russia and Hong Kong. Anua, Inc. (US) had 2025 revenue of ₩42.2 billion and a net profit of ₩1.26 billion. That small figure suggests most US sales are still booked by the Korean parent; the report does not split sales by country.
- At home, Olive Young. The heartleaf toner won an Olive Young Award for the fifth year running in 2025, according to Cosmorning.
Why People Think Anua Is Not Korean
There are three reasons the question "is Anua Korean?" keeps coming up.
- The name does not sound Korean. "Anua" is not a Korean word, and the toner bottle's front label is in English and French, with no Hangul.
- It became famous abroad first. Most of its sales are overseas. Many American buyers met it on TikTok Shop or Amazon, not in Seoul.
- The face of the brand is American. Kendall Jenner became its first global ambassador in June 2026.
None of this changes the paperwork. The company is registered in Seoul, owned by two Korean founders, and its products carry Korean manufacturers' names.
How To Tell The Genuine Product
Popular K-beauty products attract copies and grey-market sellers. For Anua:
- Buy from the brand's own store. On Amazon, check that the seller line says ANUA, or use the "Visit the ANUA Store" link.
- Check the size. The toner is sold in more than one size, including 250 mL and 500 mL on Anua's Amazon store. A price that looks too good for "500 mL" may be the 250 mL.
- Check the label version. Current bottles say "77+" and "Heartleaf 77 + Hyaluron", the renewed formula. Older stock without "Hyaluron" may still be sold. Both are genuine, but the formulas differ.
Our Anua Heartleaf 77 toner guide covers what the product does, how Koreans use it and who should skip it.
What This Means For Shoppers
Anua is a Korean brand owned by the Korean founders who run it, made in Korea by Korean ODMs, and sold mainly abroad. It is not part of a larger beauty group. That makes it different from Beauty of Joseon, TIRTIR and SKIN1004, which all sit under Goodai Global, and from COSRX, which Amorepacific controls.
Its closest comparison in this section is MEDIHEAL's owner L&P Cosmetic, another privately held company still run by its founder, though its share register is more complicated. If you shop for Anua in Seoul, our Olive Young guide explains the monthly sale cycle.
Anua Gentle Moisture Duo — toner plus the heartleaf cream If you already know the toner suits you, this set pairs it with the Heartleaf 70 cream for drier skin. It is sold through the ANUA store on Amazon. Check the current price on the listing. As an Amazon Associate, EpicKor earns from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.
See the Anua Gentle Moisture Duo on AmazonWhat Korean SMEs Can Take From This
The Founders is no longer small, but it started as a two-person pet-food company in 2017, and its path is useful for smaller Korean brands:
- One product carried the company. Anua was about 95% of revenue in 2024, by the company's own account. A single toner, with a herb that had a story behind it, opened every channel that followed.
- Contract manufacturing let it scale without a factory. Revenue grew about 12 times in three years with almost no fixed assets.
- Growth can be self-funded, up to a point. Profits, not outside investors, paid for growth until 2024. In 2025 the company borrowed from a state bank rather than sell shares.
- Marketing costs grow faster than sales at this stage. Advertising went from 10.6% to 16.4% of revenue in one year, and the operating margin fell from 34.1% to 18.0%.
FAQ
Q: Who owns Anua?
The Founders Inc. (주식회사 더파운더즈), a Seoul company. Its two co-CEOs, Lee Sun-hyung and Lee Chang-ju, own 100% of its shares, according to its 2025 audited accounts on DART. The split between them is not disclosed.
Q: Is Anua a Korean brand?
Yes. The brand and its parent company are Korean, the owners are Korean, and the products we checked are made in Korea by Korean contract manufacturers.
Q: What is Anua's parent company?
The Founders Inc. It is independent and unlisted. It also owns the hair-care brand Fromlabs and the pet brand Project21.
Q: Who makes the Anua heartleaf toner?
Kolmar Korea (한국콜마), according to the product notice on Anua's official Korean store. The cleansing oil is made by Cosmecca Korea. The Founders has no factory of its own.
Q: Where is Anua's headquarters?
521 Teheran-ro (Parnas Tower), Samseong-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, South Korea.
Q: How big is Anua's company?
The Founders had consolidated revenue of ₩717.7 billion (about $505 million) and an operating profit of ₩129.5 billion (about $91 million) in 2025.
Q: Is The Founders a public company?
No. It is unlisted and has no outside shareholders. On 16 October 2026 we found no public listing plan.
Sources
- The Founders Inc., FY2025 consolidated audit report (Samjong KPMG), DART receipt no. 20260430000051, filed 30 April 2026: consolidated revenue, profit, balance sheet, cost lines, ownership, subsidiaries, related parties, borrowings, guarantees, merger with TF Retail
- The Founders Inc., FY2025 separate audit report, DART receipt no. 20260430000049: separate 2025 revenue, ownership note
- The Founders Inc., FY2024 audit report (Samjong KPMG), DART receipt no. 20250430000317: 2024 and 2023 revenue and costs
- The Founders Inc., FY2023 audit report (Hanmi), DART receipt no. 20240426000858: 2023 revenue and profit, 2023 ownership note
- The Founders Inc., FY2022 audit report (Hanmi), DART receipt no. 20230628000349: 2022 figures and unaudited 2021 comparatives
- DART: The Founders 2025 consolidated audit report
- DART: The Founders 2024 audit report
- Anua official Korean store: Heartleaf 77 Hyaluron Soothing Toner product notice and price, plus product nos. 214, 66, 359 and 466 (checked 16 October 2026)
- Dealsite, "제2의 에이피알…이선형·이창주의 더 파운더즈", 14 October 2025
- Hankyung Business, "인디 K뷰티 1위…아누아, 전 세계 홀린 '원료 맛집'", 8 May 2025
- Cosmorning, "더파운더즈, 2025년 매출 7천억 돌파", 4 May 2026
- Hankyung, "수지 이어 이번엔 켄달…PDRN 대박 난 이 브랜드, 심상찮다", 1 June 2026
- FashionNetwork, Anua taps Kendall Jenner, 2 June 2026
- FRED, DEXKOUS South Korean Won to U.S. Dollar spot rate: 2025 average ₩1,421.4
Last updated: 16 October 2026. Company figures for 2022–2025 are from The Founders' audit reports on DART. 2025 figures are consolidated; 2022–2024 are separate accounts, and 2021 is an unaudited comparative. History before 2022, the overseas share of revenue, store counts, rankings and awards are as reported by the Korean press or stated by the company. Shares of revenue and margins are EpicKor calculations. Manufacturer names and Korean prices are from Anua's official Korean store on 16 October 2026. Amazon listings were checked on 16 October 2026 and can change. Dollar figures use ₩1,421 to the dollar. EpicKor has no commercial relationship with The Founders or Anua, and nothing here is investment advice.
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