Sales at Sephora

Like most college students on spring break, I went shopping. As I was walking through the local mall in my area, I passed by a Sephora, which is a popular makeup and skincare store. I thought, Wow, I haven’t been in a Sephora before, I should go in and look for some new products while I’m at home. I walked in, greeted the employee standing by the door, and started browsing. I saw the potential for a bad sales interaction in the store, so when my mom asked an employee for help, I was immediately worried. I knew that as soon as you ask for help at a Sephora, every employee will come running with their sales pitches ready to go. Luckily, I had a very positive experience in the end and still walked out with what I wanted.

The first thing the employee did was to ask us, the customers, what we were looking for. This made a great first impression and it also makes perfect sense at a makeup and skincare store which is highly customized for customers’ needs. Initially, I wasn’t looking for help because I already had an idea about what I wanted, but the employee continued to show me around all the fancy products. Unfortunately, I didn’t really speak up and wasn’t sure what to say, so I just went along with it. The employee also asked for constant feedback by saying things like, “Oh, how do you like this?” and “Do you want me to show you more brands?” This was helpful because it gives customers a chance to talk more about what they want. It was a little overwhelming because she was so eager to show me all the different options, and I didn’t want to cut her off. I also don’t interact often with many salespeople, so I didn’t communicate what I was thinking well. She gave me a lot of tips on what to buy and showed me some great brands that I might consider in the future though.

Overall, it was a good sales experience, and the employee was very friendly. She was very passionate and encouraged me to look around. Eventually she did ask me if there was anything else I needed and I said no, so I ended up looking around myself. When talking with salespeople, it’s important to remember that they are supposed to be customer-focused and that it’s okay to tell them what you want and go in a different direction. In the end, I did get the products I wanted and got more information about other options. Who knows, maybe I’ll go back to Sephora over Easter break and have another great sales experience!