international skincare visionary
MEET Youliya Turdakova: founder of BHAB Cosmetics
The beauty industry has always had a favorite customer. Young, trend-conscious, and ready to spend top dollar for the next viral ingredient that's promised to be the magic elixir to perfect skin. But what about those outside of the beauty industry's primary demographic? For Youliya Turdakova, that question became an opportunity.
A Seoul-based entrepreneur and co-founder of BHAB Cosmetics, Youliya has spent more than 15 years building businesses across borders, navigating international trade, distribution, and product development within the booming world of Asian skincare. But her path to beauty was anything but straightforward. Born in Vladivostok, Russia, she grew up between two very different worlds: her father ran an automotive equipment supply company, while her mother worked as a gastroenterologist. She later graduated with honors in Fashion and Design and spent a year and a half in China studying Mandarin- a skill that would eventually become one of the tools she used to navigate international business.
Her career has taken her across different cultural markets, from her early years in Russia, to studying in China, and eventually building her life and business in South Korea. After returning from China, she joined her father's business, traveling throughout the country, visiting manufacturing plants and trade shows, and helping lead negotiations with partners from China, Japan, Korea, the U.S., and Spain. Long before skincare entered the picture, Youliya was already learning how to build relationships, negotiate across cultures, and understand how business works in different parts of the world.
In 2014, a major shift in the family business brought another change: Youliya moved to South Korea and made Seoul her home. Soon after, beauty became the next chapter of her career. In 2015, her husband began distributing Ma:nyo, a Korean skincare brand that was then a small, online-only business with just nine products. Youliya joined the company in 2018, and helped bring Ma:nyo into the Russian market, developing new marketing strategies and a fresh brand identity while expanding its retail presence. Eventually, the brand reached major retailers including Ozon, Wildberries, Lamoda, and Gold Apple. Years later, Youliya became a shareholder in Ma:nyo. She still keeps the original bottles from those early days, a physical reminder of what the brand looked like before it became what it is today.
That experience laid the foundation for noticing how differently beauty operates around the world and how much business itself can change from one culture to another, influencing the way she would eventually lead her own company. And somewhere along the way, she noticed something missing. After years in the beauty industry, Youliya noticed that brands were constantly creating viral products for younger consumers, while skincare for mature skin was often limited to luxury products in a slow-changing market. Additionally, skincare for older demographics often overpromised wrinkle-reversing and age-erasing fables.
So, she decided to create something for the often-overlooked older women. Launched in 2024, BHAB was created for what she calls the “grown-up girls.” The idea began with a simple insight: women over 35 were often treated as an afterthought in a market built around younger consumers. Her brand combines the innovation of Korean beauty with research-driven formulas, and natural ingredients inspired by her Russian heritage.
One of those ingredients had been familiar to Youliya since childhood: chaga, a birch fungus associated with traditional health and wellness. She was struck by how differently the ingredient was understood around the world. Koreans often regard Siberian chaga as a valuable remedy, while clients from the U.S. and Canada recognized the ingredient almost immediately at international beauty exhibitions. After 3.5 years of research and development, Slowchaga™ was created, a patented complex combining wild-harvested Siberian chaga with fermented green tea kombucha. Developed in collaboration with leading technologists and developers from SkinFood, Slowchaga™ became a defining component of BHAB.
Like her brand, her philosophy is unembellished: take targeted actions, turn them into systems, and do not give up. She compares business to going to the gym. You show up consistently, put in the work, and eventually something changes. It is also why she is outspoken about honesty in beauty. In an industry fueled by viral ingredients, ambitious promises, and endless marketing, Youliya advocates for clinical validation and products that can actually support the claims printed on their packaging.
Today, she leads a culturally diverse team of 15 while raising three children and continuing to build an international business. Her story has taken her from her father's automotive company in Vladivostok, to Mandarin classrooms in China, to negotiations across multiple continents, and eventually into the world of Korean beauty.
Follow Youliya Turdakova on LinkedIn and make sure to check out BHAB Cosmetics!
