Sephora to Enter South Africa

1911 Words8 Pages
1. Introduction The history of Sephora is an interesting tale. Sephora is a French brand and cosmetics retailers founded in Paris by Dominique Mandonnaud in 1969. Before 1969 when Mandonnaud opened his first cosmetics shop, perfume and cosmetics were hidden behind counters, guarded by salesperson gingerly. However, Mandonnaud knew that choosing the right makeup is an extremely personal decision, what looks good on one person may not suitable for another. So he came up with a new simple approach: allow customers to not only browse the many shades and brands of makeup, but also allow them to try them as well. And benefit from his new business philosophy, Mandonnaud opened 10 new selling stores in 1979, the aggregate number of cosmetic shop in 38 in 1993. Four years later, in 1997 the brand was purchased by a luxury goods group by the name of Louis Vuitton and Moet Hennessey. Since then, the Sephora brand has branched out into more than a dozen countries across the world. In addition to Sephora’s own private label, the unique, open sell environment features an ever-increasing amount of classic and emerging brands. To build a professional team in the beauty industry, Sephora developed “Science of Sephora” program. This program ensures that the team have knowledge of skin physiology, application techniques and how to interact with different client. Another reward program is named “the Sephora Beauty Insider” which in launched in 2007 to increase clients’ loyalty. It offers great discounts, special products, and free sample gifts for their birthday. That’s why Sephora is not only the leading cosmetics store, but also a powerful beauty presence around the world. Today, Sephora operates approximately more than 1500 stores in 27 different countries worldwide, with an expanding base of over 300 stores in France. Sephora opened its first store in New York in 1998 and began

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