Leaders in Customer Loyalty, Powered by Loyalty360 #477: Leaders in Customer Loyalty: Brand Stories | Sephora’s Emmy Brown Berlind on Innovation, Value, and Building Deeper Connections
Sephora has long been recognized as a leader in prestige beauty retail. Founded in France in the late 1960s, the brand introduced its now-famous open-selling concept that allowed shoppers to browse freely and test products across brands. Something unheard of in department store beauty counters of the time. When Sephora opened its first U.S. store in New York’s Soho district in 1998, the concept was still relatively unknown. “Back then, few people knew who we were, and many brands didn't want to work with us as a newcomer,” recalls Emmy Brown Berlind, Senior Vice President, General Manager of Loyalty at Sephora. “So, we really built our business on creativity, differentiation, and the belief that beauty should be fun and inclusive, and that commitment continues to shape how Sephora connects with its clients.”
That philosophy of inclusivity and discovery has powered Sephora’s rise into the leading prestige beauty retailer in North America, with more than 700 stores and a vibrant digital ecosystem. A critical part of that growth has been the Beauty Insider loyalty program, launched in 2007. “The launch of our Beauty Insider program was part of a key differentiation that we were able to introduce to the market which led to a lot of loyalty with our clients and continues to support the growth of the business,” Berlind explains.