Sales grew by only 3%, lower than the expected 7%, forcing distributor Better Way (Thailand) to shift to exploit opportunities in the international market.
The company attributes slow sales to government policies such as the first-time car buyer scheme that weakened purchasing power.
About 30% of Mistine customers are in agricultural and related sectors, and sales did not go well even after the government raised the daily minimum wage nationwide last year.
Better Way president Danai Derojanawong said the economic and political environment has persuaded the company to focus on the export market to avert business risk.
It opened its first international showcase shop in downtown Paris in early January and the venue has been used for business negotiations, brand building and product trials.
Two more showcase shops will open in Dubai this year and in Moscow in the future.
"We have been contacted by several European investors interested in becoming product distributors in their countries. Mistine products can support Thai spas," said Mr Danai.
Thai spa and cosmetic products are particularly popular in Asean and the Middle East.
The company will seek a joint venture with a partner in Laos to operate Mistine business via direct sales in May, changing from the wholesale format it has used for years.
Mistine Kaona Co was set up with registered capital of 15 million baht to operate Mistine in Laos.
Better Way owns 35% stake of the joint venture, while the rest belongs to a Laotian investor.
Mistine Cambodia Co was also set up with registered capital of 25 million baht to operate Mistine direct sales business by the middle of this year. Better Way is its major stakeholder.
For the past seven years, Mistine's business in Laos and Cambodia has been run under the wholesale format, with sales of 200 million baht and 100 million baht, respectively.
Malaysia will be the next market to change format to direct sales.
Better Way started Mistine's wholesale business in Myanmar a decade ago, appointing a trading company to distribute products.
The Myanmar business was changed to direct sales in the past three years, leading sales to grow more than three times.
About 1 billion baht will be spent on a marketing budget to boost sales in Thailand this year to grow by 5% to 12.6 billion baht. In 2018, total sales will reach 20 billion baht.