Hey – That K Hoe here.

This is the pseudonym I use while exposing the industry secrets after leaving the beauty industry.

To set everything clear from the start: I am not a dermatologist nor a beauty guru.

As you’ll find out through my posts

– and thankfully so.

Because this gives me absolute leverage to be completely transparent, not play on a medical system that’s been invented to prescribe products instead of actual solutions, and show the finger to any company whose values don’t align with mine.

I am however somebody who has spent years inside the skincare industry, and saw more than enough BS to last two lifetimes.

I used to lead branding for a K-beauty company in the heart of Seoul. And prior to that I worked with some of the biggest names in the industry in a different role.

My last position was to make products sound irresistible. To analyze insider data and find the pain points. Amplify them, and then sell the “fix”.

It didn’t matter if the formula was mediocre or the science shaky – what mattered was how well the brand could package insecurity into a purchase.

As people in the industry like to call it “we sell emotions.”

Bullshit.

Emotions, yes – if the real emotion is insecurity and feeling like you’re never enough.

From overpriced moisturizers disguised as “science,” to skinfluencer scripts pretending to be personal, I saw how the entire machine runs on, in a single word, fear.

Fear of aging. Fear of acne. Fear of not being “good” enough (what ever that means). Fear of missing out on all these things – FOMO.

And behind every “must-have” drop is always a perfectly engineered storm of dopamine, desperation, confusion, and aforementioned FOMO.

I got sick of watching people with good, healthy skin wreck their barrier, wtheir confidence, and their wallets chasing something they were never meant to catch.

I also got sick of children being dragged into this, and the industry preying on 12-year olds, by pushing them, or influencers starting brands specifically targeted at children.

So I broke the fourth wall.

I created That K Glow to be the place I wish existed when I was stuck in the cycle of overanalyzing, overbuying, and getting zero results to show for it.

Make that less than zero. I fried my skin barrier multiple times while chasing the industry’s version of “perfect”.

This isn’t a beauty blog. I don’t promote any products in my posts. Skin context is unique – and I won’t compromise your health based off blind recommendations.

My idea for what TKG should be is a no-BS guide to how skincare really works.

I obviously do recommend products and make money off of that (I’m doing this full-time, so…) – but I have affiliate links on very few, very select number of posts. And those are for products that I’ve used for years – not since yesterday – and I’m ready to put my entire brand credibility behind them.

You might’ve come across my blunt rants online. Or maybe this is your first time here. Either way, welcome.

This space was built for people who’ve had enough of the noise. Hopefully, being here, you’re one of us.

If you’ve ever felt like skincare got more complicated the deeper you got into it, or if you’ve ever felt like the industry is playing you…

You’re not wrong.

And you’re not alone.

– K. Hoe