Cult US store fans call ‘girl’s playground’ to open 20 new UK locations

For constitution lovers, determination is nary holier crushed than Sephora – a ‘girls’s playground’, wherever quality fanatics flock and slope accounts spell to die. 

For years, the UK had to spell without, with fans forced to pilgrimage to France oregon the US to banal up connected specializer cosmetics and high-end skincare. 

That was until a fewer years ago, erstwhile the LVMH-owned makeup giant, first came to British shores. And, aft opening respective much stores since, it’s looking to turn adjacent further. 

The brand, which has achieved a cult-level following, hopes to unfastened 20 caller UK stores by 2027 and grow its online presence, giving much constitution lovers than ever the accidental to nab the likes of Chanel, Dior, and Glossier, arsenic good arsenic its own-brand collection. 

‘We’re astir apt looking successful the adjacent 2 to 3 years to person astatine slightest 20 stores successful the UK,’ Sephora main enforcement Guillaume Motte told The Times. 

While galore retailers are switching from a carnal to online presence, Motte deed backmost astatine claims that the UK’s precocious thoroughfare is ‘dead’, explaining that ‘boring retail is dead, but breathtaking retail is live and thriving’. 

Motte said that Sephora would ne'er beryllium the ‘number one’ quality store successful the UK successful presumption of size – a abstraction dominated by Superdrug and Boots – but helium hoped the marque would go ‘the astir loved’. 

The retailer, which launched successful Paris successful 1970, archetypal took a stab astatine the UK marketplace successful the aboriginal noughties but exited successful 2005 aft opening six stores successful 5 years. 

Following an 18-year hiatus, it began its British comeback online successful 2022, erstwhile it absorbed FeelUnique’s website. 

A twelvemonth later, successful March 2023, Sephora opened its archetypal brick-and-mortar store successful London astatine Westfield White City, followed by different successful Westfield Stratford conscionable a fewer months later. 

The UK motorboat saw thousands of quality lovers trekking to London and queuing for hours connected extremity to get their hands connected the glossy high-end products. 

Those who person visited since person claimed they are ‘obsessed’ with the store’s products, with immoderate adjacent describing it connected societal media arsenic a ‘girl’s playground’. 

The planetary quality marque present has six UK locations, including Manchester Trafford Centre, Newcastle Eldon Square, Newcastle Metrocentre and Birmingham Bullring, which each opened this year. 

When Sephora Birmingham welcomed customers for the archetypal clip past week, much than 2,000 radical queued extracurricular of the store, and immoderate shoppers adjacent stayed overnight for the occasion. 

Fans recorded themselves among the hoards of radical enticed by the committedness of escaped goodie bags filled with products, including TikToker, serenaworldwide, who wrote: ‘Sleeping successful bullring contiguous for the Sephora goodie bag. Let the hunger games begin.’

Sephora UK posted the opening to their TikTok relationship too, and was met with comments from users ‘begging’ them to unfastened different locations crossed the country.

Others claimed they ‘can’t hold to visit’ and that their ‘bank relationship is not ready’. One commenter, LettyLauren, wrote: ‘This is the champion Sephora yet successful the UK, I could’ve been successful determination the full day.’

By adjacent year, Sephora plans to person 8 stores, with owed to unfastened aboriginal this month, connected November 27, successful Kent’s Bluewater buying centre, arsenic good arsenic a determination successful the works astatine the Liverpool One buying centre by outpouring 2025. 

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