Sephora

Company: LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE

Brand value: US$1,823 million

Headquarter city: Paris

Industry: Retail

Year formed: 1970

Sephora is a chain of high-end cosmetics stores known for its extensive range, with an emphasis on edgy and trendy brands. It features its own Sephora Collection range alongside hundreds of other beauty brands. It has around 600 stores in Europe, and a total of 2,300 branches worldwide in 33 countries. In stores, it focuses on providing a luxurious environment, with a particular focus on customer service and sector expertise. Sephora also has a strong presence online, and the brand has been looking at uniting the physical and digital aspects of cosmetics shopping with the recent launch of a new store format, Sephora Studio, which it is pioneering in one of its key markets, the United States. These smaller stores have digital features such as mobile-equipped staff to answer queries faster, and function as click-and-collect points. Their communication is characterized by the tagline “Au Coeur de la beauté” or “Sephora, where beauty beats”. Sephora is owned by luxury conglomerate LVMH, whose shares are listed on the Euronext exchange.