Opening today, the SEPHORA BEAUTY TIP WORKSHOP is a 8,500 square foot, free-standing store on Powell Street in San Francisco that reflects the next-generation of the continuously evolving SEPHORA experience. The virtual paradise of endless beauty options includes a wide array of services and classes that will make a visit to the store a one-of-a-kind, individualized experience, every time.

SEPHORA has created a new beauty community experience with this opening built on its teach, inspire and play (TIP) approach.

“To create Sephora’s Beauty TIP Workshop on Powell Street, we completely redesigned our store experience to reimagine it for our client today and into the future,” said Calvin McDonald, President & CEO of SEPHORA Americas. “By fusing exceptional hands-on service and technology, we’re creating a new experience that will teach and inspire, while allowing clients to play with beauty. And this is just the beginning. Even as we introduce this concept to new stores and renovations, we are continually making enhancements that will consistently make the Sephora beauty experience more fun and fulfilling for our clients than anything they will experience anywhere else.”

Photo courtesy of WWD.com

SEPHORA’S reimagined store concept features The Beauty Workshop, the NEW striking “heart” of the store design, and an integral part of the TIP experience. The Beauty Workshop acts as a central workstation where clients come to learn via group beauty classes with Sephora’s 10 educated facilitators, leverage tutorials using iPad stations, or gather inspiration from The Beauty Board, Sephora’s own shop-able gallery showcasing user-generated content via a large digital screen. The Beauty Workshop accommodates up to 12 clients, with classes scheduled during and after store hours for maximum convenience. Each station is equipped with its own product, iPad, USB port and wifi, so clients can play, browse and share looks on the digital screen and online, right from their seat.

The Sephora Beauty Studio, now located in the front windows of the store, still serves as the place for one-on-one makeovers featuring larger stations, Sephora + Pantone Color IQ touchscreens, with updated IQ technology including lip color and concealer, and new mirror and canopy lighting fixtures for maximum light exposure. The Beauty Studio is staffed with three trained Senior Artists. And to ensure the makeover is the most convenient, clients can drop by to check makeover availability or book a premium service at one of the 12 beauty studio seats before they come in using Sephora’s client reservation system available through www.sephora.com, Sephora mobile web and the Sephora to Go app.

Additionally, skincare consultations will now take place at The Skincare Studio. This new concept store is one of the first stores in the fleet to feature this newest client service fixture, complete with a working sink and four well-lit seated stations to ease facilitation of the new Mini Facial service. A touchscreen station is also affixed to the area for instant access to Sephora’s exclusive Skincare IQ diagnostic, helping clients determine the best products based on their skin concerns and demystifying the wide range of highly effective product choices Sephora offers.

Fragrance IQ has been enhanced with a first-to-market sensory technology, InstaScent. Developed in partnership with 5^th Screen Digital, and available exclusively at Sephora, InstaScent allows clients to explore 18 scent families through an innovative delivery system. Once the self-guided fragrance assessment is complete, scented air from the selected scent categories is emitted from a nozzle. This revolutionary scent immersion technology allows clients to identify which scent best suits their preferences before exploring individual fragrances with our fragrance experts.

Larger, multi-branded, interactive areas, including the new Hair Play Station and new Trend Tables in each category area, inspire customers to explore, play and try curated assortments of buzz-worthy and best-selling products.

The BEAUTY WORKSHOP carries 12 new brands – with a stronger-than-ever representation of trends – as well as must-have and cult-favorite beauty. These include: Algenist, Atelier Cologne, Bite Beauty, Bumble and bumble, Burberry Beauty, Cane +Austin, Chosungah 22, Drunk Elephant, Drybar, FORMULA X, Fresh, Josie Maran, Kat Von D Beauty, MAKE UP FOR EVER, Maison Margiela Replica, Ole Henriksen, surratt beauty, Tom Ford Private Blend Collection and Too Cool For School.

“We see SEPHORA as a host to a vibrant beauty community and with the SEPHORA BEAUTY TIP WORKSHOP we invite clients from San Francisco and around the world to beauty together with us,” concluded Mr. McDonald.

Learn more about Sephora’s market strategy and plans for growth in the video below:

Photos courtesy of

Patricia Willis Photography

We also earned some key facts and figures at a recent CEW Sephora event:

• Both their online and brick and mortar business is growing.
• 11% of Sephora customers only by from in-store
• 18% buy online
• 61% buy both online and in-store – their most loyal customers buy from both channels
• Makeup and Skincare are doing very well (though Fragrance is a challenging category)
• The Sephora customer spans a large age range (18-49yo) and she’s a beauty junkie.
• Innovation is a big part of Sephora’s DNA and they are not afraid to try new things.
• For inspiration, they look to other brands that are disruptive, ex. Apple and Tesla.

But, with such great statistics, Calvin mentioned that one threat they are concerned with is Amazon. Amazon’s luxury beauty business continues to grow as they satisfy consumer’s need for convenience. However he pointed out that Amazon only “satisfies” consumer demand, unlike Sephora who actually “creates” consumer demand.

Calvin offered some advice to brands on how to succeed at Sephora: collaborate and partner!

If brands allow Sephora into their “kitchen”, this will allow for collaboration that will make for a win-win. Calvin pointed to the example of the “Strobing” makeup trend. He says that when this became a hot trend, they partnered with several brands to help train their artists on this technique. This resulted in big product sales, which was a big win for both Sephora and the brands.

Information on the Powell Street Sephora store: