Following a trend seen in the recent Ulta Beauty and Target partnership, Sephora will be opening 200, 2,500 square foot, shops inside Kohls’ stores by fall 2021. These spaces will replace Kohls existing beauty assortment and will be positioned at the front of the store.
This partnership will also extend online, with Kohls now selling the range of beauty products offered by Sephora, many of which have been exclusive to the Sephora brand up until now. The announcement on the Kohl’s site also stated that “Kohl's will also offer easy in-store returns, store pick-up, and curbside pick-up, and all Sephora at Kohl’s purchases made in-store and online at Kohls.com will be eligible for Beauty Insider rewards benefits, as part of Sephora's award-winning loyalty program.”
This partnership seems to be part of a bigger strategy for Kohls, who said they plan on tripling their beauty sales in the coming years. “We are leveraging this unique time in retail history to take a step back and pivot and be even bolder in our strategy,” said Michelle Gass, CEO of Kohls. “We are broadening and upsizing categories that fulfill this mission, and we are downsizing or exiting other categories and brands that don’t.”
This isn’t the first time Sephora has entered into a partnership like this. The brand previously had mini stores inside of JCPenney stretching all the way back to 2006. With JCPenny’s bankruptcy filing, Sephora began to look for new opportunities. While JCPenney initially filed a suit against Sephora, the two settled and Sephora was able to ink a new 10 year deal with Kohls, winding down their JCPenney operations by the end of 2023.
Kohls will also be clearly denoting which stores have the new Sephora experience, with “outdoor signage at Kohl’s stores will clearly mark all Sephora at Kohl’s locations.” With 100 locations anticipated by the end of 2021, an additional 750 Kohl's locations will be built by 2023. The news resonated well with investors, as Kohls’ stock jumped 14% the day after the announcement. “When we think about the beauty industry today, we’re very underrepresented. It’s a huge market and it’s expected to grow over the next few years,” Gass said.
Do you have a Kohls in your shopping center? It may be time to update your lease as the brand makes big moves to solidify their position in the market. Interested in Sephora? The brand also announced an additional 50-70 stand alone locations in the coming years. Sign up for a Retailsphere demo today to see how you can get access to expansion information and real site selector contact information.
