SEPHORA — Local services in Alexandria

This is mostly for, Rae! What a blessing you are. Beautiful inside and out. While I know the heavy demand Sephora gets for makeup application sessions, the person who handles these requests and how they are, says a lot about who they are at the core of their being. Rae, thank you for taking my call and booking my mother and I for a last minute makeup session at your location. We were visiting DC from the Bay Area for a big family wedding. It was day II/part II and I wanted my mother and I to look and dress the part. Rae, very calm, understanding, accommodating, flexible, pleasant, kind, just overall wonderful was able to fit us into schedule. I was really hoping for either my mother or I to get our makeup done by Rae, but Rae was already working on another client. Here is the thing, guys, the way the world is like right now, you never know what you’re going to get from people, no matter which side of the counter you’re standing. So, it’s a big, big, big deal when you’re received well and cared for by others in any and every context. Now I know and will always remember this location because of Rae’s exceptional customer service, consistent by voice and in-person. Thank you, I really hope to see you on our next visit, and hopefully then, you can apply our makeup. You are wonderful. You know how to treat people, you know how to talk to people, you know how to interact, reason, understand, solve. Polite, charming, engaging. I mean … These are skills that cannot be taught or trained; either you have it, or you don’t. One can be a great makeup artist, but if the personality is not there, if you’re dismissive, short and interchangeably rude, I focus more on your personality and treatment towards me more than the makeup outcome from the session. How you treat others defines the experience. Rae, thank you for leaving an imprint in us. We love DC because of memories through...

The Sephora store on 810 King Street in Old Town Alexandria is a bit cheaper than its competitor on 600 King Street, but you get what you pay. With noisy music and employees some of whom look ill-kempt, the store feels like a Walmart or Seven-Eleven amongst perfume stores. One employee had difficulties understanding what I meant by "European brand," but at least, she figured it out. The next employee was probably the best: After selling me the perfume, she asked me to wait for her to ring up 2 other customers before wrapping the perfume into a box with a ribbon (for which I paid separately). But once she had started with the packing, an older employee, perhaps the manager, told her to stop because it was "not their policy" to do so. I explained to the manager (?) that I had waited for 2 customers to get the service and that now, nobody was standing in line whom we could have held up. To no avail. If a policy like this exists, it should be used to make things smooth when there are long lines. But there is nothing wrong with being kind and giving a bit extra service if there is no practical reason against doing so. I perceived the manager (?) as stubborn and inflexible in her thinking, or even enjoying to say "no" to a customer to show who is boss. I feel bad for the young employee who wanted to help me out and reasonably asked me to wait for 2 customers. That made sense to me. Her boss (?) comes across to me as mean and miserly, and her demeanor and attitude reflects on the store. Next time, I will go to 600 King Street, or buy...

Recently started coming to this location as I love this area. Unfortunately this may be my last time coming here.

I came in with an online order and to pick up a few other items. After shipping around without anyone asking me if I needed help I was ready to checkout. I went to the counter waited for a while while about 5 employees just stood at what I guess is their posts. I then noticed the signs on each register that said the registers were closed and to find a beauty advisor to check you out. So that's what I did. I know they sometimes can use the device they carry around to ring someone out.

As I go to the lady she asked if I was ready and I told her yes and that I had an online order as well. She grabbed my online order then walked me back to the register where there was now a few people in line. She decided to take the next person instead of helping me whom she was already working with.

I explained to her that I was there waiting but the sign says register is closed to and find someone. She replies "oh these signs are always here" like whattt? Why are the signs there and why is there 5 employees walking around talking to each other and on the phone and no one can stand at the register to ring people out. That system is not helpful the customers. It was rude of her to not finish helping me before the rest of the line. At least call for back up. I had about $300 worth of products that I just decided not to get because I did not want to spend my...