LG made cosmetics before it made appliances

From face cream to household goods

LG’s early business was not a factory for refrigerators or televisions. In 1947, its predecessor, Lak Hui Chemical Industrial Corp., entered the cosmetics trade with products including face cream. The company’s name later became associated with “Lucky,” but its growth depended on moving beyond cosmetics rather than simply selling more beauty products.

A key step was plastics. Making plastic goods brought the company into the materials and manufacturing work used in everyday household products. That expansion created a broader industrial base—but it did not mean a cosmetics factory simply switched to making appliances.

A separate company built the electronics business

The appliance story developed through another branch of the business. GoldStar was established in 1958 to make electrical and electronic products. Its first major products included radios, and it went on to manufacture appliances such as refrigerators. Lucky and GoldStar thus grew along different paths: one from chemicals and consumer goods, the other from electronics.

The distinction matters. LG’s later identity as a major appliance maker came from bringing those businesses together, not from a sudden leap from lipstick to refrigerators. The group adopted the name Lucky-Goldstar in 1983; “LG” is a shortened form of that name.

That industrial detour is what makes the origin memorable: the company’s roots lay at a dressing table, while its appliance business was built separately—and only later became part of the same corporate story.