Sephora
Subsidiary | |
Industry | Consumer goods |
Founded | 1969[1] |
Founder | Dominique Mandonnaud[1] |
Headquarters | Paris, France |
Key people | Calvin McDonald (President and CEO of Sephora Americas), Chris de Lapuente Global (President & CEO Sephora) |
Products | Cosmetics & beauty |
Revenue | USD$4 billion (2013) (estimated)[2] |
Parent | LVMH |
Website |
www |
Sephora is a French chain of cosmetics stores founded in 1969.[3][2] Featuring nearly 300 brands,[4] along with its own private label, Sephora offers beauty products including makeup, skincare, body, fragrance, nail color, and haircare. Sephora is owned by luxury conglomerate LVMH as of 1997.[2][5] The Sephora logo is a white "S"-shaped flame against a black background. The name comes from the Greek spelling of Zipporah (Greek: Σεπφώρα, Sepphōra), the most beautiful wife of Moses.
History
Sephora first launched in Paris in a partnership between the UK's Boots PLC and Nouvelles Galeries as a perfumery chain in 1970. It was purchased by Dominique Mandonnaud in 1993, who merged the purchase with his own perfume chain under the Sephora brand. Mandonnaud is credited for founding and implementing Sephora's "assisted self-service," sales experience, which departed from then-typical retail models for cosmetics by encouraging customers to try products in-store before purchasing.[6][7]
Mandonnaud continued to expand the Sephora brand through the 1990s, opening up its flagship store in Champs Élysées in 1997. In July 1997, Mandonnaud and his partners sold Sephora to LVMH, who expanded the stores globally and bolstered the chain's product offerings to include beauty and cosmetic products.[2]
Sephora opened its first United States store in New York City in 1998 and its first Canadian store in Toronto in 2004.[8][9] Its North American headquarters is located in San Francisco, with corporate offices in New York City and Montréal. Sephora currently operates over 360 stores across North America.[8]
Sephora launched its online store to the U.S. in 1999 and into Canada in 2003.[8] The Canadian head office was opened in February 2007 by Marie-Christine Marchives, a former Sephora U.S. and Sephora France employee. Marie-Christine Marchives returned to France in July 2010 to become the general manager of Sephora France. She was replaced in Canada by Klaus Ryum-Larsen. Sephora currently operates over 2,300 stores in 33 countries worldwide [10] generating over an estimated $4 billion in revenue as of 2013.[2][11] As of September 2013, the Sephora at Champs Élysées in Paris, France, attracts over six million people a year.[12]
In 2006, Sephora.com purchased the assets of Eve.com for "high six-figures".[13][14]
In 2010, Women's Wear Daily named Sephora the specialty retailer of the year.[15][16]
On 18 November 2014, four customers filed a class action lawsuit against Sephora. The suit alleges that Sephora engaged in racial discrimination by wrongfully deactivating the customer rewards accounts of Asian customers under the pretense that these customers were buying products from Sephora in bulk and reselling them.[17][18]
On 1 January 2014, Calvin McDonald replaced David Suliteanu as president and chief executive officer of Sephora Americas. Suliteanu was named CEO of Kendo Brands, another business in the LVMH portfolio.[19]
In 2016, Sephora launched the Virtual Artist app, an augmented reality platform. By uploading a photo, the user can receive a virtual makeover, experimenting with different product and shade combinations.[20][21][22]
In 26 August 2016, Sephora opened its 400th location on the Magnificent Mile in Chicago. The store is the city's new flagship location.[23]
On 31 March 2017, Sephora opened its largest retail location in North America near Herald Square. The store is approximately 11,380 square feet and features over 13,000 products. It's one of six Sephora TIP Workshop locations, with interactive services and tools, in North America; the others include San Francisco, Boston, Chicago, Santa Clara Valley, and Toronto.[24][25][26]
Subscription service
In August 2015 it was announced that Sephora would launch a subscription service: Play! By Sephora. The monthly subscription service offers boxes containing five deluxe sample size products and a bonus fragrance sample for $10 a month.[27] Boston, Columbus, and Cincinnati were the only three cities to test the initial service launch in September 2015. The service launched throughout the US in 2016.[28]
In January 2015 Sephora launched FLASH 2-DAY shipping as a $10 annual subscription service. Note: The service is a non-refundable subscription service that automatically renews at the end of every 12 month subscription period unless you cancel.[29]
Insider Loyalty card members can obtain three different statuses. The first is Beauty Insider, which anyone can become upon signing up for the program. Beauty Insiders receive a free birthday gift and free beauty classes. The second is the VIB member, which you obtain after spending $350 in one year. VIB members receives special codes for various sales and samples throughout the year along with a free birthday gift, one free custom makeover, and free beauty classes as well. Individuals in the loyalty program who spend $1,000 or more in one year become VIB Rouge members. Those who reach VIB Rouge status are offered all the perks of the other two levels along with the service for free during the duration of their membership status as VIB Rouge. The perks of the service includes unlimited free 2-day shipping, no minimum purchase required, applies to EVERY order for an entire year.[30] VIB Rouge members also have unlimited access to the beauty studio in store without having to meet the minimum purchase requirements as well as a private hotline to a beauty concierge, whom they can call for advice on purchases. [31]
Brands
Sephora features a variety of beauty products from more than 100 brands, including NARS Cosmetics, Make Up For Ever, Too Faced Cosmetics, Anastasia Beverly Hills, Urban Decay, Benefit Cosmetics, Amazingcosmetics, First Aid Beauty, Lancôme Cosmetics, Sunday Riley Skincare, philosophy, YSL Beauty by Yves Saint Laurent, Tatcha,[32] Kat Von D, and Bobbi Brown Cosmetics. Sephora also features its own make-up, skincare, and beauty tools and accessories. Packaging for the line features the company's elongated flame logo in standard black print.
In 2013, the brand debuted fragrance collections with Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, and a makeup line with Marc Jacobs.[33]
Sephora Inside JCPenney
In October 2006, Sephora began opening stores inside JCPenney. Sephora inside JCPenney features some of the same makeup, skincare, and fragrance brands as well as its own product line found in stand alone stores nationwide. Sephora inside JCPenney stores are much smaller than a normal store, usually 1,500 sq ft in size.[34] There are more than 600 Sephora locations in JCPenney stores across the US.[2][35][36]
Environmental record
Sephora’s sustainable development initiatives were recognized in December 2015.[37] The company received the Sustainable Brand label, as well as the 2015 R Award for eco-design by the Génération Responsible association. Global Cosmetic News reported that Sephora's newly launched display cases have a 30% lighter metal frame that will reduce CO2 emissions by 220 metric tons.[38]
References
- 1 2 "About Sephora". Sephora.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Loeb, Walter. "Sephora: Department Stores Cannot Stop Its Global Growth". Forbes. Retrieved 3 January 2014.
- ↑ SHERMAN, LAUREN. "Inside Sephora's Branded Beauty Strategy". Business of Fashion.
- ↑ Wood Rudolph, Heather (19 February 2015). "Interview Insider: How to Get Hired at Sephora". Cosmopolitan. Retrieved 24 July 2015.
- ↑ Born, Pete (24 October 2013). "Calvin McDonald Named CEO of Sephora Americas". Women's Wear Daily. Retrieved 24 October 2013.
- ↑ "Sephora Holdings S.A. – Company Profile, Information, Business Description, History, Background Information on Sephora Holdings S.A.". References for Business. Retrieved 16 February 2016.
- ↑ "The Sephora Saga". Retrieved 16 February 2016.
- 1 2 3 "About Sephora". Sephora. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ↑ "Sephora". New York. Retrieved 24 October 2011.
- ↑ "As Ulta Looks Prettier, Sephora Sharpens Tech Edge". www.mediapost.com. Retrieved 2017-06-19.
- ↑ "Sephora.com: About Us". Sephora. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
- ↑ MASIDLOVER, NADYA. "Paris Casts A Shadow Over Hours at Sephora". The Wall Street Journal.
- ↑ Marsh, Lisa. "ARNAULT'S SEPHORA BUYS BUSTED EVE.COM". New York Post.
- ↑ Miles, Stephanie. "Sephora.com Buys Assets of Defunct E-Tailer Eve.com". The Wall Street Journal.
- ↑ "WWD 2011 Beauty Inc Awards: Retailer of the Year". Women's Wear Daily.
- ↑ Hamilton, Anita (4 January 2012). "How an Upstart Beauty Company Broke into the Big Leagues Read more: How an Upstart Beauty Company Broke into the Big Leagues – Ideas for Small Business". Time.
- ↑ "Civil Complaint" (PDF). PacerMonitor. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
- ↑ "Sephora Class Action Lawsuit". Sephora Class Action Lawsuit. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
- ↑ "McDonald Named Sephora Americas President/CEO, Suliteanu To Become Kendo Brands CEO". Beauty Store Business Magazine.
- ↑ "Sephora Updates Its Digital Beauty Makeover App | PYMNTS.com". www.pymnts.com. Retrieved 2017-06-19.
- ↑ Caldwell, Georgina. "Sephora updates Virtual Artist app to include blush and contour shades". Retrieved 2017-06-19.
- ↑ "Sephora Using Mobile Across Entire Customer Journey". Multichannel Merchant. 2017-06-09. Retrieved 2017-06-19.
- ↑ "Sephora's Magnificent Mile store has new, high-tech look". Chicago Tribune.
- ↑ Panych, Sophia. "10 Hacks for Shopping the Largest Sephora in the United States". Allure. Retrieved 2017-06-19.
- ↑ Strugatz, Rachel (2017-04-03). "Experience Matters: Sephora Goes Bigger on 34th Street". WWD. Retrieved 2017-06-19.
- ↑ Zoldan, Rachel Jacoby. "Sephora Just Opened Its Biggest Store Ever, and It's Truly Insane". Glamour. Retrieved 2017-06-19.
- ↑ Novellino, Teresa. "Birchbox is about to meet a French foe: Sephora". Biz Journals. Retrieved 14 August 2015.
- ↑ Malamut, Melissa. "Boston Is One of Three Test Cities for the New Sephora Box". Boston. Retrieved 14 August 2015.
- ↑ "Sephora: : Sephora FLASH Subscription : hidden-category". Sephora. Retrieved 2017-02-19.
- ↑ "Sephora FLASH 2-Day Shipping Subscription Now Available!". Temptalia Beauty Blog: Makeup Reviews, Beauty Tips. 2015-01-21. Retrieved 2017-02-19.
- ↑ "Sephora". www.sephora.com. Retrieved 2017-04-03.
- ↑ "TATCHA Skin Care". Sephora. Retrieved 14 September 2014.
- ↑ "Beauty Boom: Is Sephora Becoming High Fashion’s Next Target?". Time. 9 January 2013.
- ↑ "About Us | Sephora". Sephora. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
- ↑ "Sephora inside jcp". Sephora.
- ↑ "As Ulta Looks Prettier, Sephora Sharpens Tech Edge". www.mediapost.com. Retrieved 2017-06-19.
- ↑ "Sephora receives Responsible Brand label and 2015 R Award for eco-design". LVMH Moët Hennessy – Louis Vuitton. Retrieved 18 December 2015.
- ↑ Miles, Louise Prance. "Sephora honored for sustainable development initiatives with eco award". Global Cosmetic News. Retrieved 18 December 2015.
External links
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