What Kilala does

Kilala (可啦啦) is a Shenzhen-based Chinese color cosmetic contact lens (彩瞳) brand founded in 2011, serving predominantly Z-generation consumers aged 18-24 with a portfolio of daily disposable, monthly, semi-annual, and annual replacement lenses. The company pioneered the 'color lens as step one of makeup' (彩瞳即底妆) category positioning, marketing its products as beauty accessories rather than purely corrective devices, despite all SKUs being classified as Class III medical devices. Core product technology includes the first-to-market use of hyaluronic acid for in-lens moisture retention, medical-grade blue light protection with patented aurora-green lens design, non-ionic hydrogel materials, and 0.06mm ultra-thin lens construction. Manufacturing is fully outsourced to three Taiwan-based partners — Jinghua Optics, Jingshuo Optics (Asia's only fully automated contact lens factory), and Wangdeng Technology — with monthly capacity exceeding 50 million pieces from Jinghua alone, supporting the industry's fastest SKU iteration cadence.

Kilala operates a DTC-led, multi-channel go-to-market: Tmall flagship (the first domestic color lens brand to launch one in 2015), Tmall pharmacy channel (maintained as #1 since 2011), JD.com, Pinduoduo, Douyin (live commerce + KOL seeding), and Xiaohongshu, complemented by offline retail counters opened in 2018-2019. Marketing combines celebrity endorsements (Zhang Yuxi, Ju Jingyi), KOL seeding, TV/variety show placements, and high-profile event sponsorships — most notably exclusive title sponsorship of Douyin's 2021 Wonderful Night gala. Revenue is generated primarily through unit-priced direct sales of lenses, with a smaller attached stream of eye care accessories (contact lens solution, lubricating drops, steam eye masks). A second growth curve into transparent (clear) contact lenses, including astigmatism customization, was announced in 2021 alongside the Series B/B+ raise.

The business is founder-led by Zhao Songgeng, a Forbes 30 Under 30 (China, 2020) honoree with 10+ years of category experience. Funding history includes a Pre-A/A round of approximately 100M RMB in 2020 and Series B/B+ rounds totaling 400M+ RMB in August 2021, the latter led by Innovation Works and Yuan Yi Investment with participation from Jinding Capital, Cornerstone Capital, Qianhai FoF, and follow-on from Feng Rui Capital and KIP China. The company reports 1.8M+ fans, 100K+ private community members, and 7.5M+ cumulative service interactions as the customer engagement base supporting continued product-led growth.

Name

Kilala

Legal name

可啦啦彩瞳

Website

https://kilala.cn

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Kilala is a Shenzhen-based DTC brand founded in 2011 that designs, sources, and sells color cosmetic contact lenses and eye care accessories to China's 18-24 year-old Z-generation consumers, primarily young women, through Tmall, JD.com, Douyin, Xiaohongshu, and offline counters, with manufacturing outsourced to Taiwan's top three contact lens factories.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cosmetic Contact Lenses

NAICS

Ophthalmic Goods Manufacturing (339115), Optical Goods Retailers (45613)

SIC

Ophthalmic Goods (3851)

akta.pro primary industry

Contact Lenses & Care Systems (Soft/RGP/Scleral Lenses; Cleaning/Disinfection Solutions) (HLAHAJAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Eyewear Accessories & Care (Cases, Cleaning, Chains) (CRAAAKAI)

Keywords

• Colored contact lenses
• Cosmetic contact lenses
• Daily disposable lenses
• Eye care accessories
• Hyaluronic acid lenses

Headquarters

HQ city

Shenzhen

HQ country

China

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations

Revenue model

1. Color Contact Lens Sales: Direct-to-consumer sales of colored contact lenses (彩瞳) across multiple e-commerce platforms including Tmall, JD.com, Pinduoduo, Douyin, and Xiaohongshu. Products span daily disposables (日抛), monthly (月抛), semi-annual and annual replacement cycles.
2. Eye Care Accessories: Sale of eye care products including contact lens care solutions (护理液), lubricating eye drops (润眼液), and steam eye masks (蒸汽眼罩)

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Kilala designs, brands, and sells colored cosmetic contact lenses (彩瞳) targeting Z Generation consumers aged 18-24. The product line includes daily disposable, monthly, semi-annual, and annual lenses with proprietary hyaluronic acid hydration and blue-light blocking technologies. The company also offers eye care accessories including lens care solution, lubricating eye drops, and steam eye masks. All products are Class III medical devices sold primarily through DTC e-commerce channels.

Product overview

Kilala (可啦啦) operates as a professional color cosmetic contact lens brand offering a unified portfolio centered on colored contact lenses (彩瞳) as the core product, supplemented by eye care accessories (护理液, 润眼液, 蒸汽眼罩). The company pioneered the "彩瞳即底妆" (colored contacts as makeup primer) concept. Product lines span daily disposables (日抛) as the primary focus, monthly (月抛), semi-annual and annual (半年/年抛) options. Recent innovations include hyaluronic acid series (玻尿酸水光感, 玻尿酸氛围感), blue-light blocking lenses (柔光灯防蓝光), and camera-effect lenses (镜头感美瞳). The brand plans to expand into transparent contact lenses as a second growth curve. All products are classified as Class III medical devices.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Color Contact Lenses (彩瞳) Main product line of colored cosmetic contact lenses for Z Generation consumers (18-24), available in daily, monthly, semi-annual, and annual replacement schedules. Includes specialized series with hyaluronic acid moisture and blue-light blocking technologies. All products are Class III medical devices.
• Hyaluronic Acid Daily Disposable Color Contact Lenses (玻尿酸日抛彩瞳) Bestselling daily disposable colored contact lens with hyaluronic acid moisturizing formula for long-lasting comfort. Achieved 270,000 boxes monthly sales and ranked #1 in category for 6 consecutive months on Tmall, with single-product sales exceeding 10 million RMB.
• Soft Light Blue-Blocking Contact Lens (柔光灯防蓝光美瞳) Medical-grade anti-blue light contact lens with innovative aurora light green lens design providing internal and external dual anti-fatigue protection against blue light from electronic devices. National medical device registration: 国械注准20223161696.
• Hyaluronic Acid Ambiance Contact Lens (玻尿酸氛围感美瞳) High-gloss design with upgraded hyaluronic acid 2.0 moisture formula providing bright, comfortable eyes with extended wear comfort for beauty-conscious consumers.
• Hyaluronic Acid Watery Glow Contact Lens (玻尿酸水光感美瞳) Daily disposable hydrogel contact lens with sodium hyaluronate in preservation solution creating a natural watery glow effect for bright, transparent, alert-looking eyes. National medical device registration: 国械注准20163160030, valid for 5 years.
• Camera Effect Contact Lens (镜头感美瞳) Ultra-thin (0.06mm) contact lens with lock-edge black frame design for eye contouring, creating a camera-ready natural pupil blending and expansion effect. National medical device registration: 国械注准20213160012, valid for 6 years.
• Contact Lens Care Solution (隐形眼镜护理液) Lens care solution for cleaning and storing contact lenses, sold as a complementary eye care accessory for contact lens wearers.
• Lubricating Eye Drops (润眼液) Eye moisturizing drops designed for contact lens wearers to relieve dryness and maintain eye comfort during lens use.
• Steam Eye Mask (蒸汽眼罩) Warm steam eye mask for eye relaxation and care, providing soothing warmth to relieve eye fatigue for consumers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Top 1 market share on Tmall Double 11 and Double 12 2020, surpassing international brands like 海昌, 博士伦, 强生
• +2 more outcomes

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• 精华光学 (Jinghua Optics)coreTechnology or IntegrationTaiwan factory partner - Asia's #1 contact lens manufacturer with monthly production capacity exceeding 50 million pieces (5000万片/月). Taiwan's earliest international market-oriented contact lens manufacturing and sales service provider. Stock code 1566.TW.
• 晶硕光学 (Jingshuo Optics)coreTechnology or IntegrationTaiwan factory partner - Asia's only contact lens factory with fully automated production. Critical for high quality and efficient manufacturing.
• 望隼科技majorTechnology or IntegrationTaiwan factory partner for contact lens manufacturing. One of three Taiwan manufacturing partners enabling Kilala's supply chain advantages.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Alcon: Global eye care leader (Dailies, Air Optix, FreshLook colored lenses). Competes with Kilala in colored contact lens category in China as part of broader ophthalmic portfolio.
• Bausch + Lomb (博士伦): Global ophthalmic goods giant with broad vision care portfolio including contact lenses (Biotrue, Lacelle colored). A legacy incumbent in China that Kilala overtook on Tmall color contact lens rankings in 2020; comparable product category but vastly larger portfolio.
• Johnson & Johnson Vision (强生): Global contact lens leader with Acuvue brand spanning clear and cosmetic lenses. Another incumbent Kilala surpassed in China online color contact sales; competes at the brand level across vision care categories.

Direct peers

• Cici (熙希): Chinese color contact lens brand competing on similar fashion-forward SKUs and Tmall-led distribution. Direct category rival with overlapping target demographic and product replacement cycles.
• Hydron (海昌): One of China's largest domestic contact lens brands, offering both colored and transparent lenses through offline retail (optical chains, pharmacies) and online. Kilala overtook Hydron in online color contact lens sales in 2020; they compete head-to-head in China.
• Mien (可糖): Chinese color contact lens D2C brand focused on trendy daily-disposable cosmetic lenses with similar KOL/celebrity-driven marketing. Comparable to Kilala in product mix, Z-generation target, and DTC platform strategy.
• 4iNLOOK: One of China's leading color contact lens DTC brands, offering colored and transparent lenses across Tmall and other Chinese e-commerce platforms with a similar Gen Z-targeted positioning. Directly competes with Kilala in product category, target customer, and distribution channels.

Regional players

• GEO Medical: Korean color contact lens brand known for trend-forward designs and Asian-market distribution. Comparable product category and target demographic; primarily serves Korea/Japan rather than mainland China.
• Lensme: Korean color contact lens brand with strong design and fashion positioning in Asian markets. Comparable product category and Z-generation target; primarily Korea/Asia-focused rather than China.

Emerging players

• FreshKon (奥克拉): Singapore-headquartered color contact lens brand active across Southeast Asia with fashion-forward SKUs. Comparable category and customer demographic but smaller scale and different geographic focus than Kilala.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors7 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Kilala