Amazing and unique approach to customer service with fantastic corporate culture
Sephora is dedicated to excelling, like no other, in customer service. In fact we call our customers "clients". A customer comes in and buys something. A client is someone you build a personal and ongoing relationship with - this is what we want @ Sephora.
Like no other cosmetics retailer, Sephora spends enormous amounts of time and money investing in education. We call ourselves "The Beauty Authority" and we back that up by ensuring that our staff have unexcelled product knowledge which is updated with constant training by our education staff as well as by all our brand representatives as well.
Sephora has a very clear and unparalleled corporate culture called "The Seven Values". They are the REASON I wanted to work for them. The values guide our every move, every aspect of how we relate to our clients and how we relate to each other. Passion for the Client, Teamwork, Innovation, Initiative, Respect for all ... are some examples. "Respect for ALL" is our over-riding value for every thing we do and who we are.
I am at the Canadian Headquarters store. We are expected to lead, innovate and pilot for the rest of the company. We are EXTREMELY busy, having doubled our sales figures in only 3 years. We have risen through the ranks, as a store, to the point where we now rank # 14 in the entire world for sales. We are very HIGH achievers.
Every day I meet with our clients and discuss their very individual needs and concerns. I listen acutely and ask carefully
ProsAs in the main body of my review. Client survey feedback, bonuses, feeling part of a highly accomplished team.
ConsExtremely LOUD music that quite often makes conversation and consultation extraordinarily difficult.
A corporation that is more concerned with making money than the well-being and happiness of it’s employees
Sephora as a company puts on a giant show for those on the outside looking in to appear as a “great place to work”. This is absolutely not the case. There is zero work life balance even though Sephora claims it as one of it’s “values”. Management and head office expects both part time and full time employees to dedicate all their time to the company and to drop everything to work for them. You are constantly given a hard time when you do try to request time off, and questioned if/when you call in sick for a shift. There is never enough people scheduled, so you are almost always doing the job of multiple employees and are overwhelmed on a regular basis. Instead of giving pay increases where they are certainly due, Sephora bribes employees with gratis (free product) and continues to underpay employees for the overwhelming amount of work they do. During situations like a pandemic, they continuously prove that making money is more important than the safety of their employees.
There is zero support from management when short staffed and/or when clients verbally abuse employees. Management continuously picks favourites to give hours to, time off to, and gratis to on a regular basis.
Policies never apply to all employees, management picks and chooses who the policies apply to instead of applying them to all employees as they should. Management conducts them selves in an incredibly unprofessional manor and regularly both entertain and partake in gossiping about other employees both
ProsGratis (free product), good benefits for full time employees, product knowledge/education, small travel opportunities
ConsNo work life balance, constant indirect comments from management instead of direct acknowledgement and conversation, favouritism from management, bribery with gratis instead of proper pay increases, doing multiple jobs/tasks outside of pay grade, constant short staffing, no opportunity for advancement, zero discipline of employees not following policy and/or breaking rules, constantly picking up the slack of employees not doing their job, zero management support
The first 6 months were great and I really enjoyed my job. I looked forward to going to work and was genuinely proud to work for Sephora. The last 6 months, however, have been exhausting and frustrating and almost intolerable. Huge increase in pressure for driving sales and making “multi-world” baskets. If you work here, the amount of times you hear “multi-world” in a day probably drives you crazy. If you don’t know what that means, it’s essentially making sure a client buys more than one type of item instead of JUST makeup or JUST skincare (makeup + skincare, skincare + haircare, etc.) The berating I have heard from higher-ups to store-level management about not reaching this target is shocking. It feels like they want us to throw something extra that a client doesn’t need into every basket. The micro-managing is also intolerable. They see you talking to someone for 5 seconds when it’s quiet and they tell you to split up and find a task. And then get upset when someone needs help but you’re “tasking” instead of being available immediately. I’m also not exaggerating when I say talking for 5 seconds… it feels like they don’t even want us to speak to our coworkers. So many of my coworkers have left because of the drastic change and increase in stress, and many others I have spoken to are looking for other jobs. I honestly used to think they were just being oversensitive, but I am one of the maybe 3 strongest BA’s and I’m over it. I can make multi-world baskets easily, I’m alway
ProsGratis, discount, benefits, experience in the industry
ConsMicro-managing, company doesn’t care about employee satisfaction, limited growth, low pay, disorganized
2.5 stars rounded up.
I've worked there for quite a while, and I was there for both the previous CEO and the new one.
Before, they were really focused on their core values which emphasized work-life balance, teamwork, and expertise.
Recently, they've been focused on just making numbers, disregarding the cast members' morale and happiness.
In summary:
- less gratis; at my location, you'd be lucky to get a couple pieces a week if you're not a lead or specialist/store director. Why aren't the cast members who are actually selling not getting the gratis? Greedy leads and specialists/store directors end up having fat gratis bins.
Also, people from head office post their gratis on social media, and they LITERALLY get huge boxes of gratis. Remember that the people on the bottom are the reason why you can keep having your job.
- integrity doesn't seem to be a thing anymore. Most of the management team has gotten to where they are by brown nosing and don't put in the time or the hard work. Lots of politics and miscommunication.
- lack of education. Before, with the old CEO, they had loads of master classes. Within the past year, barely 5 master classes. How is "expertise" supposed to be a core value when you don't train your cast? You can't replace education and skill honed through practice with OSQ and WECARE (acronyms for a system of steps you take in every consultation that Sephora thinks is a sure fire way of getting people to buy stuff)
- no ro
Prosevents (espeically from Benefit) brought some semblance of happiness and free lunch
Consno communication, no advancement, abysmal gratis, no humility from management or head office, low pay, no training
A typical work day for me includes clocking in, helping clients with makeup recommendations, processing transactions on till, and greeting clients.
Over my time at Sephora, I have learned a lot in terms of artistry. From moving to different worlds, I have seen different aspects of how a business is ran.
The workplace culture is not good at my Sephora location. The
management team constantly uses tactics of favouritism to run their store. In addition, there is a huge lack of support from management in day-to-day life at Sephora. Many days they would be spent in "meetings" (these were about weekly, and consist of talking badly about cast) where no leadership is available on the sales floor, and when we would need assistance, they would be visibly angry that we bothered them.
Recently, there has been a huge cut in hours at Sephora. Full-timers (non-salary) have had their shifts cut from 5 a week to 4 or sometimes 3, and part-timers are expected to be able to pay their bills off of 5-10 hours a week. People who have gotten second jobs to supplement their pay and make ends meet have been met with disapproval from management. Even though people's second jobs collaborate with Sephora's schedule and work around these hours, there was a lot of talk about "loyalty" within the company and management would use a lot of "we have invested in you and now you've done this"; by investing in you, they mean sending you to mandatory programs and classes that you need in order to work
Sephora has allowed me to express who I am in full capacity. They have invested in me and ignited my passions consistently. I have been with the company for almost 10 years now and I have grown both personally and professionally as a part of Sephora.
As far as what my day to day work looks like it has evolved over the years as I have navigated through in store advisor roles, entry level and senior leadership roles to FSC roles(Head office).
I now work remotely from home 90% of the time. I have learned how to adjust my leadership style to different personalities and skillsets. I have expanded my business acumen, presentation and technology skills. I have been pushed out of my comfort zone in a supportive way.
My managers have always been my biggest cheerleaders. I have always felt supported and confident in navigating through change and obstacles with them. Celebration has been a huge part of my Sephora journey as well as feedback and coaching. My managers always are sure to recognize my successes small or big and also in the moment share feedback and guidance on how to grow through learnings along the way.
Culture is the biggest part of why I love this company. I have worked for other companies where the values are displayed on posters but not lived by the company. The values Sephora has are truly engraved into everything that they do, down to the way they treat there people and the business decisions that they have made. They also align with my personal values which is
Your experience at either location is entirely determined by whose butt you kiss and who likes you. If you’re an a** kissing professional and make the management feel like they’re high ranking entrepreneurs and incredible people, you’ll do amazing. You will get absolutely everything you want. The catch is putting up with some leaderships falsely inflated egos... good luck!
On the contrary, if you speak up about the l absolute nonsense and unacceptable behaviour you’ll see, consider yourself done. You mind as well just resign. And while you’re at it you’ll be made to feel like it’s absolutely you’re fault, and the reasons you’ll be given are bogus. Things that are personal such as you’re not self aware, or you’re challenging. For example, if any of them read this they’ll automatically think that whoever wrote this is “bitter, horrible, negative, needs help” etc, and they won’t spend one second self reflecting and thinking of the truth to it.
You’ll hear some members of leadership talk to people unacceptably, but if you bring it up be fully prepared to have a look of shock staring back at you and a speech about how it was ever meant to come across like that, blah blah. They can behave how they want but you can’t. Remember that. You’ll also see some people get a great work-life balance schedule while you take all the mid shifts and closes, but that’s a treat best saved for if you’re hired. There’s one particular member of leadership you’ll see get whatever they want, talk ho
Sephora is a retail job so it's understandable that they have certain numbers/goals to hit. Despite that, they're an awful company to work for. Unless you live at home or are a teenager, you'll get nowhere- money wise and professionally.
They expect ALOT from whether it's the hours or tasks you do during your shift while constantly reminding you that "you're on the clock". The kicker is when we do our bag checks at the end of the shift, we have to wait however long it takes to get through everyone while NOT being paid. Sometimes it could take 15-20 min which is ridiculous considering they like to fill up every minute of your shift with something to do because you're being paid but they don't like to return the same courtesy when it comes to your own time.
Management subjects to favouritism BIG TIME. If you're in the group you're not expected to do things like garbage runs, quality runs, cleaning tasks etc. However, if you're not in that group, be prepared to be constantly asked to do all those things and then some even if you're busy with a client and the "favourites" aren't busy at all.
The pay is the worst. Minimum wage applies to everyone (unless you're a favourite then you'll probably get a raise and be paid more than some people who've been there for years). It's a laugh that an inexperienced colour consultant who's never applied makeup before gets the same pay as an actual professional artist who attended an institution. You won't be able to afford your stude
ProsGratis
ConsManagement, wage, respect for all, everything.
I liked working there at first, as a makeup artist it’s great for working on a really diverse clientele, but I find the job overall very fake and pushy. I have to cake on so much makeup (they rather you have a bunch of makeup on that doesn’t look good than minimal makeup to bring out features), and I find the whole vibe very condescending (especially coming from management and the lingo Sephora uses). The pressure to sell is also pretty high, which is irritating considering you don’t get commission. The free product is great though, I’d say for an aspiring makeup artist it is a great job to have considering you have access to the whole store of skincare/makeup to improve your artistry on any skin tone/type, and the free product is great for starting to stock your kit. However, I came into Sephora after already graduating secondary education for makeup and freelancing myself, and I find that there isn’t a lot of freedom/creativity that you can put into the makeups you are doing, ultimately you are advertising Sephora’s makeup/techniques/lifestyle so it makes growing your personal style almost impossible. You can advance in the company quite easily, almost to the point where it is pushed onto you, which is what happened to me. I have been having issues with work/life balance however, and will be leaving due to the scheduling leaving me no time to catch up in school, even after me bringing this up to them. Overall, I recommend Sephora for aspiring makeup artists/makeup lovers,
ProsFree product, good discount(40% for Sephora collection 20% for everything else), easy to move up in company
ConsHigh pressure to sell with no commission or tips, minimum wage, condescending management (my personal experience)
The only good thing about this job is SOME of the coworkers. I say some because of the management team. I've never dealt with such awful management or leadership. Constantly belittling cast, always making passive aggressive comments and constant disrespect. The girls I work with are amazing, and it's upsetting to watch them get treated so unfairly. They're all hard workers, and amazing with clients, yet leads always find something to pick on.
Lets talk for a quick second about how awful the pay is. Minimum wage as a certified makeup artist through Sephora, while also holding a diploma and certificate from makeup artistry school is INSANE. $14.00/hr for a full face application in a 1-on-1 setting while also being expected to provide lessons for the client??? What is Sephora on????!!!??? Also, you CANNOT accept tips, or they'll literally threaten to fire you. This is also not just any retail job. You are expected to go above and beyond, spending 5-10 minutes (which is expected per client, but you'll probably be yelled at by management if you actually do it) with each person that walks in the door. Cashiers are paid the same as color consultants who are paid the same as certified artists... Different job=different pay.
Gratis is OK. Who can dislike getting free makeup?? I mean, a lot is promised and not a lot is given, but the stuff I have received is generally nice stuff. I just hate that management uses it as something they can hold over you. Like you won't get it or don
This job feels like riding a seesaw. You experience a lot of ups and downs (usually downs) working here. The company tries to make it seem like they really care about their employees when they really don't.
They shackle you down with "golden cuffs." The discount is decent, you get occasional free items called "gratis/training products" (which they are changing to giving less and less), and the hours are flexible... but some of the things you have to deal with working here just aren't worth it.
Upper management is/can be very passive aggressive, petty, and pushy. Lower management/"CEL"/key holders tend to abuse the little power they do have when upper management isn't around and tend to take their frustrations out on Beauty Advisors... and the mini managers omg. BAs who have been with the company for a long time like to breathe over newer employees or constantly overstep boundaries acting like they are in a management or leadership positions.
It just seems like the company as a whole is missing the mark on who they're hiring to work in their stores. People are constantly not pulling their weight, are straight up lazy, or just disappear for their entire shift... and management doesn't do a thing about it.
There is A LOT of favoritism and pettiness that happens on and off the floor. Even in front of clients/customers.
Hours and pay is also another negative thing about the company as a whole. You can be hired as a part time employee, work over 40 hours a week, and not re
ProsDiscounts, free items, flexible hours
ConsSchedules not set, pettiness, favoritism, poor management
Overall Sephora is a great company to work from and the best retailer I’ve ever worked at however is also a high pressure management job - especially for bigger stores.
The team are all very lovely and hard working. Everyone gets along well and is a fun environment to be in!
Would recommend for someone as a full time/part time/casual position.
However as you reach a manager level it is very hard to progress from there as there is not a lot of room for growth, and no progression past Store Manager.
The management titles do not even reflect the amount of work you are actually doing.
‘Senior Beauty Advisor’ (aka Department Managers) - this is the equivalent to a Store Manager at a smaller retailer. You work a weird rotation and barely get weekends off, you are constantly on the shop floor trying to juggle 50 things at once especially working in a bigger store. It is very stressful trying to run the shop floor as a department manager when head office does not give you enough hours to adequately staff the shop floor. You deal with angry customers all the time and sometimes burnt out staff as there is not enough people on shift. No work life balance at all and pay is not reflected in work load. Good thing is you can ignore all the what’s app chats and messages on your days off unlike ASM & SM
‘Assistant Store Manager’ - the same as above except on top of this you also have a lot of operational work to complete while managing your department managers and all your other t
ProsLovely store teams, free product, discount
ConsPay is too low for workload, no work life balance
I used to enjoy working here, but things have drastically changed over the last few years to where there is absolutely no respect for workers.
If you are licensed reading this, don't bother with this company. You are better off waiting tables, bartending, barista etc until you can start at a salon/spa. They hire kids just out of cosmo school to do makeup as no one else will accept the criminally low rate, and then there is no training aside from watching videos. The results are about what you'd expect, and they have pressure to achieve an unrealistic number of services per day (for an inexperienced person) without any support. There is no development. The average time a licensed person stays after onboarding is less than two months.
Used to be able to get a raise every year by asking, but no raises have been given since 2019 despite achieving sales more than 2x expected store budget, record online sales, and increased risk due to COVID. And the risk is high. Customers feel free to take their masks off to try on makeup testers, even in mask mandate areas and being told that it isn't allowed at this time. You are expected to be up close to customers for color matching and helping them try things on (eyes/brows/above mask only) despite the high contagiousness of the current strain, and stores are no longer allowed to close if there is a positive case among staff.
I also used to feel optimistic about progressing my career here, as there used to be so much put into employee dev
ProsFree product monthly, strong LGBT presence
ConsLow wages, no development, no opportunity for growth, not valued
I've always wanted to work at Sephora and was excited when I was hired on as a seasonal member. I frequently shopped at Sephora and I'm even a VIB rouge member so I thought working there would be fun. I was wrong.
Because I was at a smaller location they had to cut all of the employees hours so I only got 1 day of training out of the scheduled 4 days. Then the following week I was scheduled my first shift. I had a blast the first day, I loved interacting with customers and playing in makeup and since I am knowledgable about a majority of the brands this job was very easy for me. The downside however was I was just kind of thrown in the situation and I felt that the seasonal employees aren't treated as highly as the permanent employees are.
The shifts are only 5-6 hours and you are only scheduled 2-4 times a week. The pay is horrible for what they expect of you. They practically pay you minimum wage. It is not commission based either so it is hard to tell which members are really the sales people and are actually doing the work. Not everyone there is a makeup artist and you have to be certified by Sephoras standards in order to do makeovers on clients.
The Coworkers can be fun but also drama filled and catty. They would talk about guests a lot on the headsets which I thought was really unprofessional and rude. The managers are the worst and will micro manage like crazy. They are constantly on the head sets telling you about sales and how we need to push the custome
So I worked for Sephora for a about 18 months. I was originally hired as an LBA, and that was my role for over a year before I took another job that was a conflict of interest (to the other employee, not Sephora) so I had to step down from that role to a regular Beauty Advisor. Working as an LBA was great but definitely had its downside. For one, I never received proper training for the makeup, I was getting swept under the rug a lot and although doing makeup isn’t my forte, with the proper support and guidance I would have done it. It was my job! Lol But that never happened. I only ever did waxing and perk facials. There is also a lot of pressure to get clients and I felt like corporate as a whole wasn’t doing any marketing to incite “clients” to want a service. I will say, that they have improved and working as a BA definitely took the weight off my shoulders. It’s less pressure to preform.
One of the issues with Sephora is they push a lot of left wing agenda politics that are disguised as being “inclusive” which Sephora is all about, right, but really it’s about pushing this narrative that the media and government are about and I didn’t appreciate that. It was annoying and I felt as if I was the only employee who noticed that but again, I never brought this up because who talks politics at work? Lol anyways, management was alright. I won’t go into details but it just felt like a lot of favoritism was happening. A life of the same people were getting the equivalent of em
A typical day at work consisted of coming in around 5 a.m. once or twice in the week and leaving around 11 a.m. From that time frame, I would unpack incoming shipment with my team members and stock gondolas (makeup displays) and make sure each brand was displayed to perfection. Also, I would get ready to change positions and go on stage (selling floor) as a beauty adviser where I would greet clients that come into my area and make sure they are well taken care of, and eventually lead them to the check out areas after satisfying their needs. Satisfying their needs mainly consisted of recommending products that I like and know for a fact that works, making samples for the clients and/or even express check out using the mobile devise that is only for debit or credit cards.
I have learned a lot more things about make-up than I knew. For example, achieving a flawless foundation routine by simply incorporating a luminous primer from any brand and mixing it with your foundation of any kind, to get that fresh awaken dewy look.
Management was very friendly and approachable, I enjoyed being in their presence because they really cared about their cast members (employees) and what was going on with them. Most importantly, they stayed on top of your performance and made sure you were giving nothing but your best.
My co-workers (cast members) were extremely great! They were always open to my questions and always gave a positive response, as if they were eager to teach a "rookie" a
Questions and answers about Sephora
How often do you get a raise at Sephora?
Asked Nov 9, 2022
Once a year
Answered May 27, 2023
Once a year
Answered May 23, 2023
What benefits does Sephora offer?
Asked Dec 14, 2021
Presque aucun
Answered May 2, 2023
shopping discount
Answered Apr 22, 2023
Why would you want to work at Sephora?
Asked May 30, 2018
I have passion to work with sephora. I love the products that sephora offers, I think it makes it easier to work with all skin tones.
Answered Aug 30, 2020
I n love all about Sephora and products. Plus my passion is all the relative to Makeup and Skin Care and be update of the trend in this field
Answered Jul 5, 2020
What should you wear to an interview at Sephora?
Asked Feb 15, 2018
Black t shirt and black pant and a lot of make up
Answered Dec 5, 2019
Blue shirt and black trouser
Answered Apr 9, 2019
What is a typical day like for you at the company?
