Health Management Enters Everyday Retail Channels

Health management products are rapidly moving beyond hospitals and specialty stores into everyday consumer channels. At its [All Day Care Lab store] opened in Sinseol-dong, E-Mart24 has put beauty, health, and fashion front and center and stocked [around 380 product types], while Xiaomi Korea launched the [Smart Band 11], proposing exercise and sleep tracking through an everyday device with a lower barrier to entry.

Kyowon Wells is also expanding its sleep business, previously centered on beds and mattresses, to bedding products such as [SweetOn], selling the broader sleep environment as a bundled offering. This reflects the view that a model combining management services and repeat purchases is more effective than one-off product sales; in fact, the [cumulative first-half sales volume of related products rose 122.1% year-on-year], showing that companies are beginning to treat sleep as an independent lifestyle business.

Sleep Interpretation Shifts Toward Data Coaching

In digital health, interpretation and intervention functions are being strengthened beyond simple record-keeping. Samsung Health lowered the threshold for starting sleep coaching to [3 days within the past 2 weeks], enabling users to begin behavioral changes more quickly, while Oura expanded its service through [Health Radar] toward reading long-term trends in blood pressure signals and nighttime breathing.

Behind this trend is the fact that wearables have accumulated a sufficiently large volume of biometric data. However, because devices estimate sleep based on [photoplethysmography (PPG)] and movement, among other indicators, it is important to regard them as reference tools for encouraging lifestyle changes rather than replacements for [polysomnography (PSG)] used in medical settings.

Functional Commercialization Concentrates on Sleep and Metabolism

In the health functional food and biomaterials sectors, corporate interest is shifting away from broad immunity concepts toward more segmented benefits such as sleep, metabolism, respiratory health, and brain function. Of the [29 technologies] disclosed by the Korea Food Research Institute, [64 one-on-one consultations] were conducted, and at a joint briefing by government-funded research institutes, [4 promising technologies] related to sleep, respiratory health, and blood circulation were presented separately, accelerating links to commercialization.

Companies are also designing functionality in a narrower and clearer way in line with this trend. Huons N is pursuing recognition for a [individually approved functional ingredient for reducing body fat], Jung Kwan Jang has redefined the use of red ginseng through its blood sugar management brand [GLPro], and sleep product startup Romancive secured [KRW 4 billion in a Series A investment round] to build a foundation for distribution and overseas expansion.

Verification and Management Challenges in an Expanding Market

As the market grows rapidly, the importance of verification and regulation also increases. The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said that a significant portion of online food advertisements targeting holiday demand were [caught making false or exaggerated claims], and in its inspection of gluten-free foods, it also identified [20 posts containing unfair advertising], putting the brakes on the abuse of functional claims.

Meanwhile, even as interest in sleep and health grows, not every problem can be solved through consumer products or apps. Studies point both to the need to manage sleep apnea, including [moderate to severe nocturnal hypoxemia], and to areas requiring organizational-level mental health support, such as [the realities of police officers’ stress, fatigue, and PTSD and the tasks needed for recovery], suggesting that the growth of the wellness market should proceed alongside public management systems.