On November 27, 2025, the TMI Magazine team had the opportunity to visit Amorepacific, South Korea’s largest beauty and cosmetics company, home to brands such as Sulwhasoo, Laneige, Innisfree, and Aestura. During the visit, we were introduced to the behind-the-scenes process of producing Hyangjang, the company’s in-house magazine and the first Korean beauty magazine of its kind.

First published in 1958 under the name Hwajanggye, Hyangjang became Korea’s first ever monthly beauty magazine, offering various beauty advice and introducing global women’s style trends to readers.

The TMI Magazine team had the opportunity to visit Amorepacific, South Korea’s largest beauty and cosmetics company.

One detail that stood out to me was that the magazine has been distributed free of charge since its first issue. Despite this, copies were so popular that people were willing to purchase them at used bookstores. Today, you can access the previous issues through the company’s website, demonstrating the magazine’s long-standing cultural presence.

Opportunities to visit a large corporation like Amorepacific and meet the people who bring a publication like Hyangjang to life are rare, which made the experience especially meaningful for our team.

Although a student life magazine serves a different purpose than a commercial beauty magazine, I found that many aspects of their creative and collaborative workflow offered valuable insights into the industry and potential career paths.

AI as a Part of the Creative Process

As a student majoring in Data Science and AI, I was especially intrigued about how artificial intelligence is incorporated into creative work. Before I could even ask, the head of the magazine team explained how generative AI is used during the early stages of producing each monthly issue. She also shared the nine-step process their team follows:

1. Trend (re)searching
2. Keyword list up
3. Topic selection
4. Overall composition planning
5. Product list up
6. Photoshoot / Article reference
7. Photoshoot / Article production
8. Progress inspection
9. Completion & printing

Before I could even ask, the head of the magazine team explained how generative AI is used during the early stages of production.

Considering the scale of work required for a monthly publication, the process is highly demanding. There’s an overwhelming amount of information available online and researching and identifying beauty trends traditionally would take days, at least. However, AI allows the team to generate a list of relevant keywords and trend directions within just a few hours, significantly reducing the time spent on initial research.

Source: Hyangjang Issue no. 666, pp. 52-54

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I personally have mixed feelings about the idea of AI replacing creative work, but this experience showed me a different perspective. At Amorepacific, AI is not used to eliminate creativity but rather support it by handling time-consuming tasks.

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The team also mentioned that AI-generated images are becoming more common for marketing and commercial purposes and are already appearing in Hyangjang. While the topic remains controversial, it seems clear that AI will continue to play an expanding (and inevitable) role in the creative industries.

Communication and Collaboration Beyond Taejae

Producing a magazine within four weeks involves researching, planning, selecting from more than 700 products, conducting photoshoots, and writing articles (plus quality check and printing). This scale of work cannot be managed by a single team alone. When the team decides on a topic, the rest is all strategic delegation to other teams and effective communication and collaboration.

At Taejae University, communication and collaboration are emphasized as one of six core competencies. Seeing how these skills are practiced in a professional setting helped me to understand their real-world significance (especially in corporate culture).

Whether in school or in the workplace, the ability to communicate clearly and work effectively with others determines the success of any project. Observing Amorepacific’s collaborative environment made me realize that these competencies are not just buzzwords, but practical tools that shape outcomes.

Participating in this visit through TMI Magazine and the Global Program Center was an experience I am truly grateful for, and it allowed me to observe a real-world creative operation and gain a deeper understanding of how large organizations function. Moments like these highlight the value of active and experiential learning, and I hope more students will take advantage of similar opportunities in the future!