Sephora Will Reopen 70 Stores in 13 States This Week
This week Sephora announced its plans to begin reopening its stores across America after closing all of its retail locations on March 17 due to the coronavirus pandemic. But this won’t be happening all at once, and there will be a number of new safety measures in place to protect shoppers and staff.
Select locations in Colorado, Indiana, Kansas, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Georgia, Alaska, Arkansas, Arizona, and Alabama will be among the first to reopen their doors to customers on May 22. The company said in a press release that it will “evaluate each store based on local government and health guidance before making a decision.”
“While the retail environment will feel different and many factors will remain out of our hands, we’ve learned to embrace what we can control. We are taking an intentionally measured and phased approach to reopening, putting the priority on the health and safety of our communities,” Jean-André Rougeot, president and CEO of Sephora Americas said in a press release. “As we gradually reopen our stores over the next few months, we have taken great care in how we welcome back our employees and our clients. We are grateful for our clients’ support the past two months, and we want to safeguard the experience for those who want to return to stores. We will follow guidance from the CDC, government and health authorities in tandem with extensive supplemental safety measures, to formalize our new Sephora Health & Hygiene Guidelines, that safeguard the in-store shopping experience.”
The new Sephora Health & Hygiene Guidelines include 48 safety procedures and “extensive employee training.” This includes adhering to social distancing guidelines and restricting the number of people allowed in a store at any given time, deep cleaning, hand sanitizers placed throughout the store, face masks worn by staff and available to customers, and temperature checks for all employees. You also won’t be able to use any testers until further notice—they will remain for display only.
Sephora says it will continue to pay its employees (including benefits) who work at stores that are not yet reopening.
Amid the pandemic, the company has also been among the major beauty brands giving back to those in need. Earlier this month the retailer announced its Project Care program, which will supply products to over 65,000 frontline health care workers and those dealing with domestic violence across the United States.
Originally Appeared on Glamour
