If you have never used a Korean face cream made from snail slime then you may be missing out
Likewise you may be being left behind if you dont spend an hour or two each week wearing a Korean face mask made from seaweed
These are two products at the forefront of the latest big trend to hit the global skin care and cosmetics industry – the boom in such items developed and made in South Korea
The Asian country has long been obsessed with skincare – South Korean women spend twice as much of their income on beauty products and make-up than their American counterparts Meanwhile South Korean men spend more on skincare than those in any other country
Such a dedication to looking and feeling good means that South Korea is at the forefront of research into new skincare products and its exports of such items are soaring
Last year South Korea exported more than $264bn (£185bn) of cosmetics goods a new high according to the Korea Customs Service This compares with $1bn in 2012 and $191bn in 2014
One of the biggest export markets for Korean skincare products which have been collectively dubbed K-beauty is the US where the big rise in sales has been led by small firms more often set up by young Americans of Korean ancestry
And the ingredients arent ones traditionally found in American or European products Snail extract for example is supposed to stimulate the formation of collagen and elastin is used in moisturisers and spot treatments
In a beauty salon in New Yorks Koreatown district business partners Christine Chang 34 and Sarah Lee 35 are holding forth on the newest trends in skincare products from South Korea
Ms Lee holds up a poster of a frilly white translucent mushroom explaining that the fungus is a new ultra-hydrating ingredient being used in skincare
She has the full attention of her audience a select group of beauty editors diligently taking notes
Both Korean Americans Ms Lee and Ms Chang first met 10 years ago whilst working for global skincare giant LOreal in South Korea
Back in 2014 they decided to use their dual knowledge of Korean skincare products and the US to start their own company called Glow Recipe
Their business imports such items from South Korea and its website sells 150 products Their bestseller is a face mask made from kelp covered in a hydrating serum which retails for $14
Ms Less and Ms Chang says the business has been growing at an average 70% ever quarter since they launched
The popularity of Korean beauty products in the US can be traced back to 2011 when the then unknown product BB cream first launched in the country
BB cream is a hybrid moisturiser and foundation that Korean women had been using for years In 2014 the US market for BB cream alone was worth $164m
South Koreas beauty industry has seen phenomenal growth says Sarah Jindal analyst for market research firm Mintel
Still there are some major differences between the Korean and the western approach to beauty For example while in the west it is typical for women to follow a three-step facial regime of cleanse-tone-moisturise in South Korea there are 10 different steps including the use of essence and ampoule creams and a sheet mask
Bridging this beauty gap is where people like Korean American Charlotte Cho come in Ms Cho runs the online beauty blog and shop Soko Glam with her husband and also recently launched a book about Korean beauty secrets
A native of California who moved to New York Ms Cho 30 says: We helped drive this growth in 2012 [of the sale of Korean beauty products] when we started the company
At the time I felt like there was a huge gap between US and Korea There was a cult following but no proper bridge between the two
The blog and the book help explain and spread the Korean beauty philosophy and Ms Cho is a proponent of the 10-step routine She says SoKo Glam is growing exponentially in its third year
Megan McIntyre beauty director at lifestyle website refinery29com says that most American women who try the 10 steps cant keep it up
After a while many women who tried to keep up realised that it was pretty damn expensive to use ten plus products a day and there wasnt necessarily a huge noticeable difference in their skin she says
So instead they cherry picked the products that were best for their skin An essence here an ampoule there an under-eye mask for emergencies
It became less about emulating the entire routine and more about finding something new to boost an existing routine
But the dilemma for Western consumers remains – where to begin with this plethora of products?
Alicia Yoon who runs New York-based Peach and Lily an online store selling imported Korean beauty products says it is important that firms like hers dont sell too many items
Our curation process is so rigorous that only 5% of the products we look at really make our cut she explains
From thousands of South Korean brands she picked out about 50 and then visited their companies to look closely at their research and development process
Ms Yoon 33 who quit her job in private equity to start her company in 2012 says she hasnt looked back since