A Wren Says

As a broke college student, I would go with my friends to waste time in Sephora. We’d spend time together wandering the aisles together, smelling fragrances we couldn’t afford, and swatching as many lipsticks as we could. Sometimes we’d buy something, other times it was enough to leave the store smelling and looking better than we entered. I look fondly on that time. The experience I had in store is largely why I am committed Sephora shopper now.

Flash forward several years, and we have what many would deep the crisis of the Sephora 12 year olds. A menace lurking in your local Sephora, using all the testers you wanted, buying all the Drunk Elephant, and leaving behind a path of destruction, or rather dirty products. As frustrating as it is that they are shaping the shopping environment in this way, or how concerning it might be that they are so focused on skincare, it’s not all bad. Well, for Sephora that is.

There is power in providing a good experience to these young shoppers now, early on before they establish their loyalty to other brands. Having access to the brand to play and experience products can help them form positive associations with Sephora now and develop a long-term relationship with the brand as their go-to spot for their skincare and other beauty needs. On the flip side, there is a delicate balance between catering to this young, next generation of consumer and the current adult in their target market who now hates her shopping experience.

This trend brings up the question, how do you cultivate a new consumer base without alienating your old one? How do you think Sephora could have handled this?