Sephora brand is one of the most successful cosmetics, perfume and skin care brands that serves its customers all over the world. It is interesting to know that Sephora only operated as a chain of retail stores since its establishment for nearly two decades; But since 1995, he established his own brand and increased his popularity. We have dedicated this article to review everything related to Sephora stores and brand.
The story of the beginning of Sephora
In 1970, the English company Boots PLC, then almost half a century old, opened its first branch of perfume stores in Paris with the aim of expanding the business. The purpose of business expansion was to promote the company at the global level; But since Butz PLC alone was not able to increase its branches in France, it was necessary to enter into a partnership with a French company. After the necessary checks, finally, the lottery fell in the name of Knowles Galleries. In 1976, during a contract, these two companies became partners and for a few years, they increased the store branches; But the profit of the stores was not very defined. Boots PLC was of the opinion that the activities and incorrect policies of Knowles Galleries hindered the profitability of the stores. For this reason, he decided to end the partnership and by buying all the shares of the stores, he resumed his activities as the sole owner, and by 1993, he had increased the number of his stores to thirty-eight.
Note 1: Since the beginning of the 1980s, the name of these stores was Sephora; But there is no information about which company chose this name.
Note 2: As long as Sephora stores have been owned by Boots PLC, there is no source to check the history.
It is better to know that Sephora stores and Sephora brand were founded by different people. We will examine the histories of each separately for a better explanation.
About Dominique Mandonad, creative founder of the Sephora brand
Dominique Mandonaud was a painter and sculptor who was born on September 5, 1947 in Limoges, France. His parents had a small soap shop where Dominique also sold soap from the beginning of his teenage years until ten years; But since his economic thinking was very strong, after a while he decided to start a new business for himself.
Establishment of a perfume shop in 1969
In 1968, Dominik separated from Waldenisch and started setting up a perfume shop. After various plans, finally, one year later, he was able to fulfill his wish and open his own store called Shop 8 in the Haute-Vin district of Limoges, France. The small shop that we now know as Sephora’s global company and brand!
Adopting innovative approaches in the field of sales
It is interesting to know that at that time the market of perfumes and cosmetics in France, like other European countries, was limited to retail style; That is, the sellers usually represented a single brand and sold only the goods and products of one brand or one factory. This type of sale was common even in grocery stores and supermarkets; But by adopting two new approaches, Dominic was able to make a big transformation in the European sales market, which we will examine together:
1. Buying goods from several brands
He decided to purchase his perfumes from different brands due to increasing diversity and attracting customers. His historic move caused his store to become popular as a multinational store; But this was not the end of the story.
2. Self-service sales
At that time, it was common to buy perfumes and beauty products with the concept of buying before trying. In such a way that the customers did not have direct access to the item until they bought it and could only see and choose the items from behind the showcase. By moving away from this traditional concept, Dominique used an innovative way to sell his products, and that was to try before buying! He displayed all the products in the center of his store in a self-service manner so that customers can try the desired product with the help of the seller and buy it if they like it. This creative idea was highly welcomed by customers and created a new era in the field of product sales.
Dominic Mandonad’s decision to increase product variety after a decade!
As Dominique pioneered a new style of sales, it took him nearly a decade to popularize self-service sales in perfumery. In 1979, by opening a new branch of his store, he expanded his range of products and classified his goods by type instead of by brand. This incident really marked a revolution in the retail sector of perfumes and cosmetics.
Collaborating with the Promodes Group of Retailers, the first and last bad luck
Beginning in the 1980s, Mandonad continued to expand its self-service stores and by 1984, it had opened four more branches. At the same time as this expansion, Shop8 stores were placed as a subcategory in the newly developed Permodes retail group; But this cooperation lasted only until 1987. Because that year, Promodes decided to focus on the retail sale of its food products, and for this reason, it separated from Shop8.
However, due to the debts that Mandonad raised for the international expansion of Shop8, Promodes still had control over the profits of the stores, and if this matter went to court, Promodes would win that court. In order to dissuade Promodes from his decision, Mandonade bought eight perfume stores located in Paris and quickly applied his sales policy to these stores to plan for further growth. But his efforts were not very fruitful because again Promodes was not satisfied with providing more funds for Shop8 and set an astronomical figure for the resale of the stores’ shares to Mandonad. Although he could not afford to buy back his shares, he was not one to give in to Promodes so easily.
Mandonad’s proposal to Apax Partners to compensate for the financial loss
In 1988, Mandonad offered to cooperate with the aforementioned company by presenting a new profit plan to support the purchase of its shares. On the other hand, Astrog Private Equity Company was also interested in Mandonad’s sales style and decided to cooperate with Mandonad. Mandonad also used this opportunity and explained his work plan to the founder of this company. After due diligence, both companies agreed to both Mandonad’s offer and all of his terms for his plans to exit before his 50th birthday in the late 1990s. In this way, Mandonad was able to regain his financial ability to take back the shares of his stores from Permodes.
Beginning of plans for globalization
It took until 1991 to finalize the purchase of 8 stores. After that, the three partners decided to establish three to five new branches every year to expand their annual profits and start global business; But since Store 8 had only twelve branches, this did not seem very possible. A big decision had to be made to increase store branches; Because Dominik wanted all his demands to be fulfilled by the time period mentioned in the contract. Therefore, he planned his work again. For the next year, everything was going according to plan, until the French economy entered a severe recession. This recession caused the planning to face problems; But the company was still trying to build a very large global chain.
The common point of Sephora and Mandunad is to buy Sephora stores
This was the original thought that came to Mandonad and his partners to survive the economic recession as much as possible. It was 1993 and Sephora chain stores were under the ownership of Boots PLC. If Mandonade could convince Boots to sell, his plan to go global would become a reality. In any case, he and his partners managed to acquire ownership of all Sephora stores after several negotiations. Following this important event, the beginning of the 1990s was predicted to be the beginning of the golden years for Mandonad and his partners.
Review of the most important events of the 1990s
In 1993, Dominique had 50 stores, which included products such as perfumes, cosmetics and hygiene products. His new plans for his stores include:
1. Integration of all Sephora stores and 8 stores
In addition to changing its retail approach, Mandonad renamed all 8 stores to Sephora and consolidated all 50 stores. After this, Sephora was born in a way.
2. Sephora brand establishment in 1995
Two years have passed since the expansion of Sephora stores, when Dominique decided to implement his latest idea. The profit margin of the stores was unprecedented and it was time for Dominique to establish the Sephora brand. Therefore, by establishing several other stores in large shopping centers in France and producing cosmetics and skin care products, he officially opened the Sephora brand.
3. Opening of the first Sephora store on Champs-Elysées in Paris
This branch was the first and largest Sephora store in Paris, which was supposed to provide the most complete and diverse products to its customers.
4. Purchase of all Sephora points by LVM company
In 1997, Dominique was entering his fifth decade of life, which meant giving up his business entirely. Since in the late 1980s, this issue was also regulated in his employment contract with his partners, he had no problem with this. On the other hand, his LVM company, which has been monitoring Sephora and its success for a long time, communicated the first sales offer to Dominique with an astronomical figure. This decision did not last long because he and his partners responded positively to the offer of his LVMs. In this way, in 1997, Sephora as a brand and a chain of stores was completely handed over to LVM.
The purchase of Sephora by its LVM brand was initially a great success and a new beginning for Sephora; Because in just one year, new Sephora branches were established in countries such as Italy, Portugal, Spain and Poland, and the sales of the brand increased significantly. Also, due to adopting a different style in the field of sales, Sephora became very popular. Today, it is well-known for its extensive product offering, hiring of knowledgeable salespeople, and innovative retailing methods. Sephora is still owned by LVM and its headquarters is located in Paris.
5. Globalization
In 1998, the Sephora brand opened its first store in New York City, United States, and today this number has reached 250. Many independent Sephora stores are located in the largest shopping centers in the United States.
6. Launching an official website and online shopping
In 1999, with the rise of chain stores, Sephora decided to launch its first online store. Although it is not possible to try before you buy in this mode, many people prefer the convenience of shopping online to shopping in person. Also, the Sephora website may not have the products of the brands that it provides online to customers in person. Therefore, since the launch of online shopping, Sephora has many virtual customers.
Important Sephora brand events in the 2000s
Received the first award in 2000 and sales drop!
Although Sephora received the prestigious Innovative Retailer of the Year award due to its innovative approaches, it faced a sales slump at the beginning of the century, so it could not fund the annual expansion of its branches. He even had to reduce some of his branches!
Increasing production lines in 2003
In 2003, Jacques Levy was appointed as the CEO of Sephora and developed a wide line of products under the brand name. These products increased the number of customers for Sephora and recovered the original capital of the brand.
The beginning of the Beauty Insider program in 2003
By implementing this decision, Sephora brought a flood of customers. This program allows the customer to receive points after purchase; It is obvious that the more times you buy, the more points you get, and as a result, this range of customers is included in the group of loyal customers. As a result, they receive small gifts from the company and discounts on their purchases.
Opening of the first Sephora store in Canada in 2004
Due to the high acceptance of Sephora online sales products by customers, members of the brand think tank decided to open the first Sephora branch in Toronto, Canada. Like American branches, Canadian branches are also located in the best shopping centers of this country. Also, in 2004, Sephora launched an anti-wrinkle cream that targeted ten types of collagen in the skin and reduced wrinkles and stretch marks in less than 2 to 4 weeks. This product increased the middle-aged segment for Sephora; But now it is not available on Sephora website.
Opening of beauty bars in 2005
In 2005, Sephora took Dominique Mandonad’s creative idea, the concept of buying after trying, one step further. So that customers in Sephora centers can try the desired item as they like, in front of the mirror, in the presence of the sales manager and the product consultant, in special positions called bars. Also, in 2005, Sephora opened its first store branch in China.
tip This year, Sephora’s select retail segment had sales of 3.65 billion euros, equivalent to $4.3 billion.
The beginning of Sephora’s cooperation with JCPenney in 2006
Like Sephora, JCPenney is a chain store company with branches all over the world. With the difference that its products do not only include cosmetics and are much wider. In 2006, Sephora partnered with the company to open mini-stores called Sephora Inside JCPenney. Of course, this cooperation did not continue; But until the last moment, there were 655 Mini Sephora branches inside JCPenney stores. Also, the number of products in these stores was limited, and their activity was mostly based on introducing the product or giving customers points for each purchase.
The beginning of the opening of Sephora branches in the Middle East countries in 2007
In that year, Sephora began its activity of opening new branches and cooperating with brands belonging to Middle Eastern countries such as the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. This cooperation included the opening of more than 44 stores in the famous shopping centers of these two countries.
The opening of Sephora’s Singapore branch in 2008
The very large Sephora store with an area of 12,000 square meters was opened for the first time in December 2008 in Singapore. This store is actually the largest Sephora center in Southeast Asia and is located on the ground floor of Ion Orchard shopping center.
Important brand events in the 2010s
Opening of the Latin American branch in 2010
In February 2010, after many requests, Sephora finally opened its first branch in the Dominican Republic located in North America.
Celebrating the 25th anniversary of the establishment in 2011
In 2011, Sephora opened its 300th store in Las Vegas, USA, and also celebrated its 25th anniversary.
Implementation of the Sephora Laboratory program in 2012
In this program, which consists of several stages, they gather in the central branch of each country to develop innovative ideas by using the creativity of Sephora employees to increase customers and improve the sales style of their customers.
As an example, the first stage of this program is ideation centered on getting the customer’s experience from shopping. They check all the reviews to increase their customers worldwide by satisfying the customer for a good shopping experience.
Beginning of cooperation with Pantone Company in 2013
Since the mentioned year, Sephora customers have the possibility to choose their products according to their eye color, skin color and hair color; That is, with the color matching system according to the appearance characteristics of each person, Pantone Company presents the colors that are most compatible with these appearance characteristics and guides the customer step by step in this field. In addition, Pantone announces a color of the year every year, which is very surprising for Sephora and its customers. For example, in 2013, emerald green color was introduced as the color of the year.
tip: In general, Pantone’s activity is in the field of color standardization and color matching system. For example, manufacturers in various fields can refer to the Pantone system to ensure that colors match without having direct contact with each other.
Opening the first store in Australia in 2014
Sephora opened its first Australian store in Sydney to great fanfare. Also, in 2014, Sephora’s global revenue increased by 8%.
Increase in digital services in 2016
Sephora was still trying to increase its sales by launching two new tools based on the Facebook bot called Reservation Assistant and Color Matching. Sephora’s growth in 2016 was higher than the previous two years.
Collaboration with G&M Fashion Career in 2017
This collaboration happened in the first months of 2017, and after that, Sephora was in the spotlight until today. It also opened a very large new store in Texas, USA. The increase of branches was not only limited to America; Because Sephora increased its branches in several Australian cities.
Received Retailer of the Year Award in 2018
This award is given to a company that achieves outstanding and important achievements in many fields. The then CEO of Sephora said:
We are very happy to receive the award because it proves that Sephora is truly appreciated globally. We are also sure that after this, the Sephora family will recognize Sephora more than before.
Sephora’s controversial event in 2019
In April 2019, the popular R&B singer, Ms. SZA, took to her Twitter account to share her unpleasant experience with Sephora’s California branch, which caused the brand’s social image to be somewhat tarnished. The story was like this:
When Mrs. SZA was present at the branch to buy and also to promote one of the most famous Sephora brands called Fenty Beauty, one of the sellers did not recognize her and tried to insult her because she was black. Then he calls the security staff and claims that the person in question probably entered the Sephora store with the intention of stealing! Mrs. SZA, who herself was a former employee of Sephora, revealed the whole story to the media and her fans on her Twitter account, which at the time had nearly three million followers, and caused a great scandal for Sephora.
Sephora’s important events in recent years
In early 2020, Sephora opened its largest store in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and continues to expand its branches worldwide. Today, Sephora has more than 2,600 stores in 36 countries and provides its customers with products from more than 100 brands and more than 15,000 products.
Four important success factors of Sephora
1. Product strategy
Sephora provides customers with more than 15,000 products from different brands. This possibility is very attractive for customers.
2. Pricing strategy
Currently, Sephora is a quality brand and a unique company that offers a wide range of cosmetics, hygiene, and care products to its customers at an affordable price, and is therefore very popular. Of course, the reasonable prices of Sephora are for loyal and long-standing customers of this company.
3. Promotion strategy
The company relies heavily on the advertisements of its loyal and long-time customers to increase its customer base, and in this way it both fulfills its needs and attracts customers.
4. Placement strategy
As we said, the headquarters of Sephora is located in Paris; But it also has more than 2,700 stores in dozens of countries around the world, and this means that Sephora has a strong relationship with its customers all over the world. Even in online sales, Sephora advises its customers about their chosen product so that they can buy with full knowledge.
Introducing the best-selling products of the Sephora brand
Although the statistics of the best sellers on the Sephora website include products from different brands, we only review the exclusive products of the Sephora brand, which are classified into three categories and include 8 products.
Health care products
1. Fiber face mask
This mask is hydrating and is made from extracts of fruits and plants. It is useful for dry, normal, oily and combination of oily and dry skin.
Coconut: skin soothing
Matcha tea: Mattifying and targeting pores
Lychee: moisturizing and brightening
2. Hair and scalp scrub
As the name suggests, this product is suitable for cleaning the scalp, which cleans both the scalp and hair roots from fats, pollution and dead cells. In the ingredients of this product, there are also particles of salt and apple cider vinegar, which act as a disinfectant while cleaning the salt, and apple cider vinegar also makes the hair shiny. According to the brand’s claim, 100% of customers are very satisfied with the use of this product and recommend it to others.
3. Hydrating cream
The origin of this product is 96% natural and contains all useful antioxidants. It is also very light weight. To the extent that a person feels weightlessness and complete lightness on his skin when using it. This product has all the necessary parameters to create a glowing skin and also protects the skin from environmental pollution.
4. Brightening cream around the eyes
In addition to creating a glow in the skin around the eyes, this cream removes and controls the dark circles around the eyes and removes puffiness around the eyes. At the same time, it has a hydrating function, reduces fatigue around the eyes, keeps the skin moist for several hours and prevents it from becoming dehydrated.
Cosmetic
1. eyebrow pencil
This product is actually a waterproof pencil that has a very fine tip. It also has a collapsible mode, which is very suitable for drawing fine and precise hairlines. Sephora eyebrow pencil is very widely used to fill in the low points of the eyebrow and has a long shelf life. Also, a brush is attached to the product to create order and uniformity of eyebrows.
2. Vegan volumizing mascara (vegetable)
This product increases the volume and curls the eyelashes; It is also 100% herbal and only produced in black. According to the research conducted by Sephora researchers, 91% of women who were between 25 and 40 years old, after using this mascara, the volume of their eyelashes increased.
3. lip line
The tip of this lip line is also very delicate and long lasting after use. It is also available in 18 colors and it is recommended to use it together with lipstick.
4. Glossy liquid lipstick
This lipstick is made with watermelon seed extract, which has hydrating properties and makes lips shine. It is long lasting and also gives volume to the lips.
Introducing some examples of famous brands in Sephora
There are nearly 400 brands that customers can buy from Sephora, and this number is increasing every year. Since it is not possible to review all these brands, we will review some important examples:
1. Dior brand
This 72-year-old brand, which has a very bright history in the fashion industry, is one of the first brands whose products are sold at Sephora.
2. Yves Saint Laurent brand
The well-known, history-making and popular Yves Saint Laurent brand has also signed a contract with Sephora years ago, and its best products are accessible to those interested in Sephora.
3. Versace brand
The best and most complete collection of perfumes of the popular Versace brand is available in Sephora stores.
4. Lancome brand
Lancôme brand is one of the first brands available in Sephora. Lancôme brand products in Sephora include perfumes and cosmetics.
5. Estee Lauder brand
The Estee Lauder brand and parent company, which is an authentic, powerful and popular brand, are present in Sephora stores with all its products.
6. Benefit brand
The Benefit brand focuses more on the production of eyebrow, eyelash and cheek care products and is a great choice for skin care enthusiasts. The products of this brand are tested in Sephora centers with the guidance of consultants.
7. Chanel brand
The Chanel brand, which is more than half a century old, is present in Sephora stores with all its products.
8. Clinique brand
The Clinique skincare brand, known for its expensive products, is available at affordable prices at Sephora stores. Of course, if you are a loyal customer and buy a lot from Sephora.
9. Burberry brand
All Berber brand fragrances are available on Sephora’s websites and stores.
10. Calvin Klein brand
This brand is present in Sephora with cosmetic and perfume products; But his products are not sold much.
11. L’Oreal brand
L’Oreal brand products, which is one of the largest cosmetics companies and is famous all over the world, from face cosmetics to hair color, are sold at Sephora.
12. Dolce & Gabbana brand
Dolce & Gabbana brand products inspired by artists such as Sophia Loren, Madonna and Monica Vitti are present at Sephora; But they are not very popular.
13. Chloe brand
Natalie Portman, a popular Hollywood actress, is very fond of Chloé products, and perhaps this is one of the important reasons for the popularity of this brand’s products at Sephora.
14. Gucci brand
Gucci and its popular perfumes are among the best-selling products in Sephora stores.
15. Hermes brand
Hermès brand perfumes have many fans among artists and fashion designers, of course, Sephora has not neglected this brand either.
16. Marc Jacobs brand
Marc Jacobs cosmetics are also of high quality. A few products from this brand are on Sephora’s bestseller list.
17. Prada brand
The Prada brand, which is mostly known for its leather bags and sunglasses, is present in Sephora with its fragrance products.
18. J. Lo Beauty brand
The owner of the brand is the popular singer and actress Jennifer Lopez, who chose the initials of her name for the brand. JLo Beauty brand products mostly include skin care products. Launched this January, she introduced 8 skincare products made with olive oil, olive leaf extract and olive kernel in her new collection, which is now available at Sephora.
19. Fenty Beauty brand
Fenty Beauty is one of the most popular Sephora brands. This brand belongs to Rihanna, a successful American singer. Fenty Beauty products are very high quality and also some of them are on Sephora’s best selling products list.
20. Rare Beauty brand
A new brand founded by Selena Gomez, a popular singer and actress of the young generation. Several products from the Rare Beauty brand are on the best sellers list on the Sephora website.
Sephora brand logo interpretation
This logo basically expresses the aesthetic point of view and brand values. A curved sign resembling the letter S in white with a black background, with the full brand name written below it. This letter also resembles a curly hair.
final word
In this article, we tried to examine all aspects related to the Sephora brand and its chain stores. Have you ever used Sephora brand products or other brands? If the answer is positive, share your experiences with us in the comments section.
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