It's Shop-Sephora-Online Season!

The MUFE is what I paid for; the rest is bonus

I prefer to buy from real stores as I like to physically hold and try a product before I buy it (plus there’s the whole instant gratification aspect). However, I do have one primary exception to that rule: When I need to get something from Sephora and it’s the holiday season.

For the last few years, Sephora has kicked off the holiday season with a code that gives you a cute baggie filled with deluxe samples. This year, buying at least $35 worth of stuff and using the code “seasonset” lets you pick one of three sample bags that contain everything from an Urban Decay eyeliner to Benefit primer to bliss body butter.

When I heard about this offer, I knew it was time to get online and order more of my favourite foundation while snapping up the Flawless Refresh sample bag. In addition to that item, I was also allowed to pick the usual three samples and as always, was offered free shipping if I bought $75 worth of items.

Three days after ordering, my package arrived and in addition to my foundation and 11 samples, I also received several sheets containing different perfume samples. Sure, the experience wasn’t a tactile one, but it was smooth, pleasant and packed with goodies.

Let’s contrast that experience with my visit to the Eaton Centre’s Sephora on Friday night. That location is always a bit of a zoo but last Friday it was particularly bad as it was some kind of special discount night for VIP Rouge members that apparently required them to all jam into the store at once and aggressively grab items off the shelf while simultaneously taking selfies (this may not be what actually happened).

I tend not to get much service at Sephora because I look so good that I clearly don’t need help (actually, it’s because I dress slightly better than a starving university student). But on Friday, I actively sought out a clerk after seeing that the checkout line was spilling to the back of the store. All I wanted was a gift card that I would pay for with credit. Did I have any other options? 

The clerk I was able to track down was quite friendly and directed me to one of the credit-only lines. It then took me over 15 minutes to get to the front. I got one freebie while I was in line and it wasn’t something I got to pick (though some people didn’t get anything so I can’t really complain). The whole experience made me wishing that you could really buy gift cards online.

While getting the gift card was my primary goal during that visit, I also wanted to check out some new moisturizers. But the crowd was so thick, and the clerks so busy, that there was no point. And if I can try products out and discover new items, what’s the point of going into Sephora?

The VIB Rouge discount is over as of today however, the clerk I was talking to says that the store will still be extra nutty until the holidays are over. So yeah, if you need anything from Sephora, you should just shop online until January (and ideally get to it from the this blog, as I’m a Sephora affiliate partner).