This week, I checked in on Sephora’s evolving loyalty strategy amid a competitive retail environment. Additionally, the beauty giant’s latest international expansion has polarized some consumers, and L’Occitane faces fallout from the departure of Sol de Janeiro co-founder Heela Yang.
Why Sephora is taking an experiential approach to loyalty
Consumers looking to pick up a bottle of The Ordinary’s glycolic acid have no shortage of options when it comes to where to buy the popular toner. They can buy it at Ulta Beauty, which offers perks like in-store pickup; on Amazon, where the exfoliating toner is available as a two-bottle bundle; or on TikTok Shop, which promises free shipping.
Or, they can buy it at Sephora, where, if they wait until Thursday, August 20, they can get four times the Beauty Insider rewards points on all purchases from The Ordinary.
Amid a competitive beauty retail environment where an omnichannel approach is non-negotiable for many brands, major retailers like Sephora are experimenting with new loyalty perks to keep consumers shopping from their stores. At Sephora, those efforts include gamified rewards activities, extra points on select brands and an increasing emphasis on experiential activities.
“We’re trying to do more than just reward transactions and, kind of, reward their relationship with Sephora, too,” Emmy Berlind, svp and gm of loyalty at Sephora. “And [we want to] make sure [consumers] understand how valuable we find the fact that they’ve chosen to shop with us.”
Almost 20 years after the LVMH-owned retailer first launched its Beauty Insider rewards program, the beauty giant has acquired more than 46 million loyalty members. But those members now have more places to shop for beauty than ever, with retailers from Walmart to Amazon making a play for beauty shoppers with perks like same-day delivery and major sales periods. That puts more pressure on specialty retailers like Sephora to give consumers reasons to stay loyal.
Sephora first launched the Rouge Celebration Weekend in 2024 to reward its highest spenders — members can achieve Rouge status by spending $1,000 at Sephora in a calendar year — with Rouge-exclusive rewards and in-store events. For 2026, the retailer brought back the Rouge Celebration Weekend in August with masterclasses from top brands like Rare Beauty and Danessa Myricks. It has also expanded the offering to its more than 1,000 Sephora at Kohl’s locations for the first time.
For 2026, Sephora has also expanded the event to the month-long Beauty Insider Celebration Month to give all members access to certain perks throughout August. That includes offers like $5 off a purchase in exchange for 250 reward points and access to extra points on purchases to certain brands.
According to Berlind, Sephora keeps a close eye on consumer feedback to determine what perks to offer its loyalty members.
“My team is very actively reading Reddit. We look at the comments in the social posts that our fabulous social team does across all the different platforms,” said Berlind. “We’re definitely always doing a lot of research to make sure we’re making decisions headed in the right direction.”
Sephora declined to share what percentage of its members fall into Rouge or VIB status, but shared that the membership to those tiers has been growing.
Sephora is not the only retailer to give extra perks to its top spenders. Sephora’s Rouge Celebration Weekend coincides with a similar shopping incentive from rival retailer Ulta Beauty. The retailer offers an annual Diamond & Platinum Appreciation Day each August where qualifying members can get perks like 10x points on select purchases. Shoppers can achieve Platinum status by spending at least $500 at Ulta in a calendar year, and Diamond status by spending at least $1,200.
In 2023, Sephora launched its Beauty Insider Challenges program, a more gamified approach to loyalty rewards. Members can accumulate reward points by participating in certain challenges, like signing up for SMS notifications or getting color matched in store. Berlind said 30% of shoppers have participated in some type of challenge since launch.
“We know generally from the research we’ve done that Gen Z loves in-person activities and also that gamification is something that’s very attractive to that group,” said Berlind. “That’s definitely an element of why we wanted to engage with our clients in this way.”
Of course, while consumers can reap the benefits of those activities by accumulating more reward points, their engagement also gives Sephora valuable data on how to keep them in store.
“It kind of creates this virtuous cycle of us being able to serve our clients better because we’re able to offer more unique, personalized experiences because they continue to shop with us,” said Berlind. “We’re trying to make sure that the value is definitely a two-way street for the people that are members of the program.”
Executive moves:
- Oriflame appoints Kenneth Benaim Campbell as CEO. He succeeds Anna Malmhake, who spent three years leading the Swedish cosmetics brand. Campbell previously held senior leadership roles at L’Oréal and Lipton.
- Allies of Skin founder and CEO Nicolas Travis to depart the brand. Travis, who founded the skin-care brand in 2016, will step down in February. Alicia Valencia, formerly global president of Makeup by Mario, will join as interim president.
- Anthony Giuliano is named managing director and head of beauty and wellness for Wells Fargo’s consumer and retail investment business. Giuliano was previously at Perella Weinberg Partners, which has advised on acquisitions of the likes of Olaplex and Not Your Mother’s Haircare.
News to know:
- Sephora will reportedly sell Sephora Collection products in Israel via a partnership with local retailer Glam42. Some consumers have called for a boycott of the LVMH-owned beauty giant based on its decision to sell to the Israeli market.
- L’Occitane Group is being sued by Sol de Janeiro co-founder and former CEO Heela Yang for failing to disclose financial information. The suit claims the company is withholding information that would allow her to value her 14.5% stake in the brand. L’Occitane acquired Sol de Janeiro in 2021, with Yang departing the brand in April.
- Frida launches personal care products for children. The brand, known for its post-partum and infant care products, debuted a line of body, hair and oral care products and tools targeted to kids ages 6-11.
Stat of the week:
U.S. retail sales of hair serums rose nearly 60% in the first half of 2026, according to data from Circana. Prestige hair care overall was among the fastest-growing beauty categories, with dollar sales up 11% and unit sales growing 8%.
In the headlines:
Why your Amazon order confirmation emails have become so unhelpful. Do Italians do beauty better? Why this pop star’s skin-care routine is inspiring parodies.
Listen in:
On this week’s episode of the Glossy Beauty Podcast, host Lexy Lebsack talks with Bilal Kaiser, founder of Agency Guacamole, on the “ins and outs” of branded beauty and wellness events.
Need a Glossy recap?
Inside AG1’s growth engine: Gummies, canned drinks, energy powder and “much more to come.” Exclusive: Sol de Janeiro takes a page out of the luxury perfume market with the launch of “intense” fragrance mists. Refinery29 and Eos take a nose dive into fragrance with new podcast series. Wellness Briefing: The emerging lung health category is top of mind after more brutal wildfires, plus news.
