Sephora to expand U.S. retail footprint with over 260 stores

By

Jennifer Braun

Published
Feb 26, 2021

Sephora announced on Thursday its largest store expansion in the retailer’s 21-year history, cementing its confidence in the future of brick-and-mortar. 

The LVHM-owned beauty chain said it will open more than 60 freestanding locations in the U.S., in addition to some 200 locations opening inside Kohl’s stores later this year.  

New standalone Sephora locations will begin to open this month, with a focus on off-mall locations in regions such as the Pacific Northwest, states including Florida and Texas, as well as major metropolitan areas like Dallas, Austin, and Houston, and cities like Los Angeles and Nashville.

The new standalone stores will equally feature a sleek architectural and visual design, and new lighting enhancements for a better beauty experience that is true to Sephora’s classic DNA. 

In addition, some 200 Sephora at Kohl’s stores are also set to open later this year. These shop-in-shop destinations will open in markets like Greater Los Angeles, including the Inland Empire, Greater New York, New Jersey and the Midwest including priority markets like Greater Chicago, Minneapolis, Ohio and Wisconsin. 

These 2,500-square-foot spaces will equally deliver the signature Sephora look, feel and experience, while offering a unique range of over 100 makeup, skincare, hair, and fragrance brands. 

Sephora saw record online sales in 2020 and the merger of its interactive retail experiences and its in-store experience will be critical. Hence why Sephora will begin rolling out a 'buy online, pick up in store' service, this week which will be available in all Sephora freestanding stores by April 2021. 

This comes after several months of offering a successful 'reserve online pickup in store' service, which enables clients to reserve products in their local Sephora stores for up to 48 hours. Other interactive Sephora offerings includes an Instagram checkout feature, offering direct shopping with Sephora via the platform, as well as Instacart same-day delivery and a credit card program featuring a buy now, pay later model. 

Sephora’s latest expansion will bring its U.S. store count to over 700 locations.