Pure Beauty

Sephora at Kohl’s marks ‘new era’ of beauty shopping

By Becky Bargh | Published: 2-Dec-2020

The deal will eventually replace the LVMH-owned beauty retailer’s agreement with JCPenney

US department store chain Kohl’s has inked a deal with Sephora to create a ‘new era’ of beauty shopping, as shop-in-shop experiences take hold across the market.

The new deal will bring a plethora of new beauty shoppers to Kohl’s thanks to the French beauty retailer’s prestigious reputation, strong brand portfolio and luxury experiences.

By 2023, Sephora is expected to have infiltrated 850 of Kohl's 1,100 US stores.

“The Kohl’s and Sephora partnership will bring a transformational, elevated beauty experience to Kohl’s from the top global name in beauty,” said Michelle Gass, Kohl’s CEO.

“This new collaboration is an excellent example of two customer-centric, purpose-driven companies leveraging each other’s strengths to make aspirational beauty far more accessible to millions of customers all across the country.”

The reveal of the ‘fully immersive’ experience in-store and online, follows Ulta’s blockbuster deal with Target last month.

Sephora at Kohl’s marks ‘new era’ of beauty shopping

For Sephora, the deal will eventually replace its current retail agreement with JCPenney, which turned sour after a court battle in May this year.

The spat began earlier in the year after the LVMH-owned retailer reportedly threatened to walk out on JCPenney, putting the future of 600 in-store beauty counters in jeopardy.

The duo reestablished their 14-year partnership soon after. However, the terms of the settlement were not disclosed.

In the US, Sephora operates almost 500 standalone stores and is said to be planning the reveal of 60 to 70 more in 2021.

“This is not a pop-up collaboration, but an investment our brand partners can rely on for the long-term, as a company with a history of sustained decades-long partnerships, Sephora has every confidence in the future of this collaboration and the unique experiences it will bring to consumers across the US,” added Jean-Andreé Rougeot, President and CEO of Sephora Americas.

“Our partnership will be built on expanding our complementary reach and scale in-store and online, creating customer-centric, prestige experiences, collaborating on new innovations and living our shared values.

“We fully believe Kohl’s is the ideal partner to bring this vision to life.”

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