Children’s cafes took the helm of children’s entertainment some time ago by providing coffees for parents and play for children, but now K-beauty brands are looking to cater to the youth market in a big way.

Shu Shu Cosmetic is a pioneer on this front and now operates boutique children’s salons across Korea.

It started by providing cosmetics suitable for children with its water-soluble nail polishes in a variety of colours, lip crayons and organic sheet masks.

Its products are non-toxic and use herbal and natural pigments to produce brilliant colours.

From child-friendly bath bombs to shampoos, its products were striking a chord with customers so the company expanded into boutique spas called Shu Shu and Sassy in 2013 to meet the growing demand.

The spas, decorated in pink and gold, feature miniature sofas and plenty of cute bunny-shaped pillows for children to play with while they are pampered.

Ahnah Han, a mother of two who often visits Seoul, visited a Shu Shu and Sassy Spa after a recommendation from a friend. “I was completely blown away by how cute everything was – from the toddler-sized robes to apple juice in champagne glasses,” she said.

Upon entering, children put on pink or blue bathrobes and head wraps with bunny ears to make them as cute and comfortable as possible.

A salon specialist takes the excited youngsters over to the sofa where they dip their feet in a warm water bath while they get a foot and calf massage and an organic sheet mask that makes them look like a bunny.

After the massage, the sheet mask is removed, and sun cream that comes in a cushion-shaped holder is applied along with some colourful lip crayons.

Now they’re ready for their manicure and pedicure.

Salon specialists take their time to carefully apply, sometimes multiple colours that the child has chosen, and follow with various stickers to put on top.

This whole experience costs between 20,000 won (US$17) and 35,000 won. Mums don’t have to be left out though: there’s also a set that includes a foot spa for them, too!

The beauty spas also offer hairstyling just for fun or for special events and all of their products are available to buy.

Shu Shu and Sassy has fast become one of those cute, fun places to take children.

Han thought the experience was perfect for her family.

“My daughter has always loved playing with her pretend make-up at home, so she was beyond excited to actually put on the products.

“I wish these products were available when I was a toddler as my grandma used to give me her almost-empty compacts and eyeshadows to play with.

“I think my husband likes that the products [wash-off] easily because my daughter likes to paint his nails, too!”

The trend has caught on and now children’s cafes have even jumped on board.

Places that once featured only play areas now have spas as well.

Cafe franchises are following suit, such as Carrie & Kids Cafe, which features Beauty Spa Salon and PriPara Kids Cafe with a beauty parlour.

Grand Hyatt Seoul also features a family-friendly package each year now, offering a beauty programme especially designed for youngsters.

Hallie Bradley is a writer based in Seoul and also has the blog thesoulofseoul.net.

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This article was originally written by Hallie Bradley for The Korea Times.