Sephora to Open 100 Stores in 2020
Sephora has big growth plans, at a time when many retail businesses are shutting their doors for good. The beauty retailer, owned by Louis Vuitton parent company LVMH, will open 100 stores in 2020. This marks its largest real estate expansion to date, more than doubling its store growth in 2019. And the focus, with this growth, will be on expanding outside of shopping malls. Sephora’s next set of stores will be slightly smaller than its existing ones, spanning about 4,000 square feet compared with 5,500. There will be a focus on fragrances and hair care — two categories where the company says it has seen tremendous growth.
Total Retail's Take: Some positive brick-and-mortar retail news is a welcome change for the industry. Beauty has been one of the stronger retail categories in recent years, driven by the likes of Ulta, Sephora, Glossier, and others, both online and in-store. Sephora is looking to capitalize on that momentum with an aggressive store expansion plan this year, taking the brand out of the mall and into suburban strip centers and urban centers. With the growth of omnichannel fulfillment programs such as buy online, pick up in-store (BOPIS) and ship from store, the role of physical retail is evolving. Sephora is betting that the experiences and services it can offer in-store will make consumers want to continue to shop with the retailer in person. So far, the numbers prove that they will.
