Few places in the world hold men’s health and skincare in such high regard as South Korea. Seoul is a wellness haven known as the “Skincare Capital of the World.” With innovative formulas and ingredients, Korean products set the global standard for effective skincare. Further, it’s not only the products that differ but also men’s approach to skincare. Opposed to Western countries, Korean men view skincare as a way to gain an edge. A confidence boost that improves their career, relationships, and energy—similar to how one might view a good fitness or diet regimen.
Paul Landon experienced this firsthand. After graduating college in Nashville, he accepted his first job 7,000 miles away in Seoul—the world’s 4th largest city. He lived there for a year and spent months backpacking through Asia. Though keenly interested in understanding new cultures, he didn’t expect to discover a solution for his skin.
Landon holds a lifelong passion for sports—spending much of his youth on football and lacrosse fields before moving to golf and triathlons in adulthood. An active life outdoors meant exposure to sun, sweat, and stress that can damage skin. Landon suffered from acne in his teens while frequent exposure to the elements caused persistent dryness, dull skin, and early signs of aging.
His skin significantly improved after adopting South Korea’s potent formulas and a basic routine. Returning to the US, he noticed men were missing out on the myriad benefits of good skincare products. Landon recalls, “When I came back to the US at that time, the men’s market hadn’t evolved much in decades. Products were largely ineffective; filled with harsh chemicals, toxic ingredients, and cheap synthetics that damaged men’s skin and overall health.”
Most of all, men’s skincare in the States was not tailored to men’s lifestyles. Landon knew men had better things to do than adopt complex 10-step routines—and heavy, greasy, irritating textures weren’t ideal for the modern sporting man.
Landon’s time in South Korea planted the seed and he began researching all aspects of the skincare industry. Building his vision initially took a backseat to building his tech career at Salesforce and Oracle. However, despite demanding hours at his job, he continued learning with limited spare time—analyzing market trends, testing formulas, and discovering nature’s most effective ingredients.
A few years later, Landon noticed the stigma around men’s skincare shifting and new brands emerging. He felt the time was right, but needed more than a superior product to bring everything together.
(Paul Landon/Contributed)
The tipping point came while Landon was on an annual golf trip with lifelong friends in Lake Oconee, GA. He noticed his friends’ skin was irritated, dry, and worn down after 18 holes in the sun. It wasn’t just their skin that suffered—the energy dropped and some hesitated to play the next day. That’s when everything clicked.
Landon saw the vision for Magnolia League, a results-based men’s brand inspired by the things he and his friends loved—the sporting life, the outdoors, their Southern roots—that helped men build confidence by looking and feeling their best. Magnolia League would inspire men to get outside—and pursue an active, fulfilling, connected life that opened opportunities.
Products would need to be potent and multifunctional—achieving visible results with fewer products and ingredients—making it easy for men to maintain a routine. Textures would need to be comfortable and light to prevent golf clubs from slipping. Formulas needed to be clean, sustainable, and made with effective organic ingredients.
All products would provide the results men needed while delivering a Southern-inspired botanical sensory experience that evoked timeless sporting traditions. From Augusta’s Magnolia Lane to Black Belt bird hunts and beach trips on 30A and Sea Island. These beloved people, places, and memories would serve as the heartbeat of the brand.
The brand name was a product of Landon’s passion for SEC football and time studying at Alabama and Vanderbilt. Landon found that in the 1960s, Vanderbilt’s athletic director sought to form a “Southern Ivy League” that became known as the Magnolia League. The concept went beyond a sports conference and embodied the brand Landon envisioned—rugged yet refined sporting gentlemen from across the South grounded in principles of courage, honor, and making one another better.
After spending a year formulating products and developing the brand, Landon accomplished exactly what he had set out to do. Now helping men build confidence nationwide, Magnolia League is the men’s skincare line for the Southern outdoorsmen. The brand allows men to discover the ample benefits of clean and high-performance skincare—just as Landon did in South Korea years ago.
(Magnolia League/Contributed)
All products are designed for the performance and function men need from their products, providing superior hydration, protection, and rejuvenation for men’s skin while upholding the highest ethical, eco-conscious, and clean formula standards. All products utilize Southern-inspired natural botanicals that evoke nostalgia while enhancing skin benefits. Landon has created the brand he had envisioned years ago without sacrificing style or quality, bringing something fresh and innovative to the Southern men’s market.
Landon speaks to the future of Magnolia League, “Our vision is to establish ourselves as the high clean and high-performance men’s skincare brand for the outdoor sporting life. Starting with Georgia, Alabama, and the Southeast before expanding nationwide.”
Shop Magnolia League here.
