PARIS — Sephora’s Parisian flagship has gotten a major makeover.
Following six-and-a-half months of renovation, the 12,915-square-foot retailer will reopen its doorways to the general public on Friday. That is the primary main reworking the placement has had since opening in 1996.
“Sephora is shaping the status magnificence panorama,” mentioned Guillaume Motte, the retailer’s president and chief government officer. “We’re, in the intervening time, going by a really inspiring momentum, with vibrant improvements when it comes to manufacturers, classes and merchandise, new buyer behaviors and expectations.
“It was the right second to reinvent the status magnificence flagship expertise,” he continued. “And, after all, the attitude of the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Video games [for which Sephora is an official partner of the torch relay] made it an ideal second for this renovation.”
“We wished to create a extra differentiated expertise that brings collectively the most effective of magnificence from all world wide, with an environment that’s deeply related to the shop’s distinctive location,” continued Sylvie Moreau, president, Europe and Center East at Sephora.
There was only one metropolis in thoughts.
“The inspiration is coming from Paris,” mentioned Benoît Ponte, normal supervisor of Sephora France, throughout a walk-through final week of the shop, which was bustling with staff organising for the reopening.
The flagship’s design nods vigorously to the Avenue des Champs-Élysées, on which it stands, at numbers 70 to 72, with a 2.6-foot-wide path of hand-set snow white marble paving operating straight by the shop. Sephora’s signature black-and-white stripes seem on some columns flanking that.
Making the whole lot glow is the 295-foot-long illuminated ceiling, which will be adjusted to resemble pure gentle. The thought was to offer the phantasm of being underneath one in all Paris’ glass-covered walkways.
Upon coming into, Sephora’s partitions appear to be made from the limestone used on Parisian buildings, but it surely’s trompe l’oeil. On the left-hand aspect is a click-and-collect space with a selfie-friendly, multihued gentle field.
A bit additional in, company will discover a record of the shop’s companies, like make-up, skincare, hair, perfume discovery, brows, face glow and personalised engraving. That hangs throughout from a wall ablaze with Sephora’s flame emblem.
The Nook is dedicated to particular person manufacturers, with the primary being Dior. Then the complete model expertise rolls out.
“It’s very premium,” mentioned Ponte of the choice. “Some manufacturers are solely at Sephora Champs-Élysées.”
An instance of a label present in no different Sephoras is Maison Francis Kurkdjian, a perfume model that shares the retailer’s dad or mum firm, LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton.
Francis Kurkdjian will probably be offered within the part dedicated to high-premium perfume manufacturers. Going through which are premium make-up labels.
“You’ve the Magnificence Hub, which is actually the Arc de Triomphe inside the shop,” mentioned Ponte, pointing to the 540-square-foot central house. “We are able to animate it on our personal, however the manufacturers are animating as effectively. For the approaching two months we can have a brand new model doing one thing day by day.”
At first, make-up and skincare labels will largely take over the hub, which is modular.
There’s an space showcasing which manufacturers are sizzling on social media, plus The Subsequent Huge Factor gondola and the Present Hub.
Reda Slaoui, director of structure and design, Europe and Center East at Sephora, highlighted some noble supplies applied, such because the high-quality marble used on some counters, in addition to the ground.
For the primary time in a Sephora, there are massive inexperienced vegetation.
“Visually it has an impact when you could have vegetation within the house, but it surely additionally helps with the air high quality,” mentioned Slaoui, including the brand new air con system filters to the utmost.
A lot thought was poured into company social accountability initiatives. There are, as an illustration, fewer digital screens within the new location versus its predecessor. Every LED system was changed with essentially the most consumption-efficient iteration.
“This retailer will scale back by 50 % the vitality consumption that we had within the earlier retailer,” mentioned Ponte.
A rendering of the outside of Sephora’s renovated Parisian flagship.
Acoustics-wise, it is going to be quieter right here, too, as a consequence of some corrugated textures on partitions, in addition to supplies used, akin to wooden.
This flagship additionally sells the big selection of status perfume — for ladies and for males — and colour cosmetics discovered at different Sephoras. These embody the likes of Profit, Charlotte Tilbury and Uncommon Magnificence.
The retailer’s signature assortment has its personal division, and there’s an space for hair care.
“The class of hair is booming at Sephora,” mentioned Ponte, explaining it’s been a section of focus for the retailer over the previous two years in France, the place its promoting floor has doubled. Some manufacturers lining cabinets embody Kérastase, Gisou, Sisley and Moroccanoil, in addition to Dyson equipment.
The place the money registers as soon as stood on the far proper of the shop now homes the skincare division, replete with strips of wooden lining the partitions and elevated ceiling. This huge space, with manufacturers akin to Byoma, Drunk Elephant and Laneige, has skin-related companies. It’s illuminated with pure gentle streaming by massive, frosted home windows.
“Like hair care, it’s one other booming class for us,” mentioned Ponte.
Merchandising was tweaked.
“We optimized the house of the manufacturers” to assist enhance circulation, mentioned Slaoui, explaining that some gondolas are shorter than earlier than, measuring 6.5 toes reasonably than 10 toes in size.
“However on the finish of the day, we categorical the identical quantity of merchandise,” mentioned Ponte.
Different exclusives for France embody Make-up by Mario, Prada Magnificence and Glow Recipe.
Previous to the transforming, Sephora’s Paris flagship boasted 12 million guests a yr, of which one-quarter had been vacationers from outdoors France. Many are thought of VIP shoppers.
Per day, there have been greater than 10,000 folks visiting, whereas after the renovation footfall ranges needs to be greater, in response to Ponte.
“That’s why the circulation is so vital to the idea and the format,” mentioned Slaoui.
The money registers now are positioned immediately behind the shop underneath a big display and self-checkout is accessible.
“We promote a product each 15 seconds,” mentioned Ponte.
A non-public lounge was expanded for VIP clients or manufacturers to animate, with companies potential.
“We have now Sephora codes — black and white — with very lovely supplies and the codes of Paris,” mentioned Slaoui. “We’re like in an condominium right here.”
This retailer renovation is backed by the most important funding within the historical past of Sephora Europe, in response to Ponte, who wouldn’t reveal numbers.
Total, the retailer goals to take a global-yet-local method.
“Sephora is the one status magnificence omnichannel retailer that’s actually world. Nevertheless, we wish to guarantee we keep related with the native shopper,” mentioned Motte.
“Our new shops, such because the Champs-Élysées flagship, as our first London retailer and our newly renovated shops in Shanghai, Singapore and Wuhan, are sources of inspiration for our future renovations, as they illustrate our technique and the expertise we wish to present to our clients,” he mentioned, including Sephora additionally learns from different initiatives, akin to its partnership with Kohl’s within the U.S.
“However there isn’t any ‘template,’” mentioned Motte. “Every of them should be significant regionally and resonate with native communities.”
