SEPHORA — Attraction in Frisco

I saw a brand of makeup that might be good for me skin, so I went to my local Sephora in Tyler, Tx to purchase it. They said I had to go to a stand alone store and the closest one was in Dallas. Being as I was going to go on a trip and have my pic made the next week, I wanted help choosing a shade from professionals, and I had heard Sephora professionals were good and, being as I have wasted so much money choosing the wrong shade on my own in the past. I decided to drive to Dallas to run other errands and go to a Sephonra, like the employee suggested. I went to a stand alone store and was told they didn't carry it, that a "bigger" stand alone store would, and she suggested I go to Stonebriar. Went to Stonebriar and requested help to choose a shade and explained I had heard they were professionals and I didn't want to make another mistake. The girl put only one shade on me and said, that's it, that's the perfect shade. I took her word, being as she was supposed to be the pro. I asked for an eyeline pencil and she suggested one I agreed to and when I went to check out, I noticed she had given me a lip pencil. She quickly switched it out for the eye pencil. The next day, I put on the makeup and was shocked at how light it was. I told myself it was probably just me, to let it set in. I tried the makeup the next day, and the same thing, whiter than it should have been. I went out of town and when I returned I went to return it to my local Sephora and was told I had to go to the stand alone store back in Dallas. Great. I called the Stonebriar store where I made the purchase and asked, if I could ship it back to them to avoid driving the two-hour trip, but was told no, it had to be in person. I drove to Dallas and when I gave it to them, I was told I was one day late for a return, it had to be returned within 30 days and this was day 31. They gave me a gift card, which I was told by them I cannot spend at any of my local Sephoras, it's only for a stand alone store some two hours away. I ended up with that card, so I guess I'll just use it online. That bottle of makeup and the "professional" help selecting the correct shade cost me two trips to Dallas, two to my local Sephoras to the tune of about $50 for gas, then $76 for the makeup I couldn't use. Never, never again. I told this story to my local Ulta store and they were very surprised the manager, who had the authority to over ride the return and make it good, especially in light of all the time and trouble I went to just to do business with them, didn't make it right for me. Never Sephora...

Dear Sephora Corporate Team,

I am writing to file a formal complaint regarding an incident that occurred at your Stone Briar location involving Store Director Liz and her leadership team. I am deeply disappointed by the way I was treated during my recent visit to your store, and I feel it is imperative that this issue be addressed immediately.

I have been a loyal Sephora customer since 2007, consistently supporting your brand both in-store and online. Over the years, I have recommended Sephora to friends, family, and colleagues and have never encountered a situation like this. However, my experiences has left me feeling disrespected, unfairly treated, and deeply concerned about the level of professionalism and customer service provided by your leadership team.

During my visit, I was subjected to rude and unprofessional behavior by Store Director Liz. Not only did she treat me with clear disrespect, but she also abused her position of authority by speaking to me in an unnecessarily condescending and hostile manner. When I attempted to address the issue, the situation escalated, and Liz made no effort to resolve the matter in a constructive or professional-friendly way. To make matters worse, I was subjected to what I believe was discriminatory treatment, based on her personal dislike of me. This type of behavior is completely unacceptable, especially from someone in a position of leadership.

I have always appreciated Sephora’s commitment to diversity, inclusion, and customer satisfaction, which is why I am so disappointed by the actions of Liz and her team. The way I was treated not only undermines Sephora’s values but also makes me question the company’s dedication to ensuring a welcoming and respectful environment for all customers.

I am requesting an immediate investigation into this matter and would like a resolution to the situation as soon as possible. I expect a formal apology from both Store Director Liz and the leadership team at this location. Additionally, I ask that appropriate actions be taken to ensure that incidents like this do not happen again in the future.

If this issue is not resolved in a satisfactory manner, I will be forced to pursue legal action for discrimination, emotional distress, and breach of customer rights. Please consider this a serious matter, and I trust you will take the necessary steps to resolve it promptly.

Thank you for your attention to this urgent issue. I look forward to your...

My niece tried to use her Sephora gift card that she received from her Grandmother for Christmas. The clerk pulled us out of line & asked if we were purchasing with a credit card. I said we were purchasing with a sephora gift card. She said no problem I can take care of you.

She proceeded to swipe the brand new gift card ( still had the sticker intact) it would not go through. She then took the sticker off & tried to manually enter the number.. no luck. She apologized & said they have been having some ongoing issues with their own gift cards. She advised for us to contact the 800 # on the back of the card to get the card reactivated...... I contacted the number on the back & the representative, whom was hard to understand, asks for the card # I gave her the gift card number. She then in a very abrupt & dry manner asks if this card was a gift or purchase? I informed her it was a gift. She then said, again in a very abrupt manner...you need to contact the person who gave you the card & get the receipt in order for this card to be re activated...uhhhh WHAT!?! the gift card was brand new & has NEVER been used. Yeah, ok I am going to contact her 80+ year old Grandmother in Arizona & ask her to track down a receipt on a gift card that she purchsed while visiting in North Carolina back in December around Christmas. Absolutely Ridiculous! She then stated the card cannot be reactivated without the receipt. It was a brand NEW gift card which was NEVER activated in the first place!!

I will be contacting the the BBB filing a complaint regarding this. It is outrageous, that you think you just get to cheat people out of their money like that!?! Also I will be contacting our local consumer 5 news to see if they can look into investigating how often this happens & how many consumers are being scammed out of their hard earned money! Its the principal of the matter at this point. I will no longer be spending money at Sephora & I most definitely will not encourage any of my colleagues or friends to buy gift cards from this company.

Update: reached out to the Customer Service number proved below & no resolution whatsoever! Beware when buying Sephora gift cards if it doesn't work without a receipt their response is basically "oh well, sucks for you" I will be filling a complaint...