SEPHORiA was really fun, you guys!

What is SEPHORiA you ask? Per their website “SEPHORiA: House of Beauty is a new kind of beauty event where every room reveals a new experience — from masterclasses with industry icons to creating customized products.”

Given that it was the first time I have ever seen anything like this from Sephora, I was excited but also knew to give them some wiggle room for craziness, as I would do for any new event/festival. So here is what I loved about it (the reasons it made my blog) and of course, I’ve added the things I hope they improve and tips for next time. Enjoy!

THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT ME BEFORE READING:

I am a Sephora Rouge member but purchased the Bronze House Key because I didn’t know what to expect
I attended the Sunday Oct 21st morning session (Session 3) because I wanted to see Mario Dedivanovic
I’ve been to many beauty events/shows, so I went in with the assumption that this event would kinda be like Museum of Ice Cream meets The Makeup Show or something like that. I figured there would be activities, shopping and lots of beauty talking
I’ve been a makeup enthusiast for years but a makeup artist for 5 years, so this is from that point of view

WHAT I LOVED ABOUT IT:

loved that Sephora gave Rouge members first access to tickets - thank you!
lots of photo opps, like tons … always a fun thing to do with friends
it felt like all my favorite brands were there, so I got the chance to explore them more with my girlfriends
YAY for samples! Lots of brands were giving away little samples of their products which made me a happy camper!
some brands were even selling full sized product on the spot
and some were selling newly released products - not yet in stores kind of stuff - which as a makeup artist made me really happy!
buying product was easy because they had Sephora cast members hanging around with little POS systems, making the purchasing process a breeze
loved that there were opportunities to customize makeup, that’s really rare and super cool, I mean how often do we ever get to do that?!
music was amazing, the whole ambiance was super fun … I could have stayed there all day long
brands really took pride in their setup/decor. You could tell a lot of work went into creating great experiences. This was not your average beauty event!
food was good too! Very surprised at how healthy, yet affordable it was. I loved it because it’s not very healthy at most trade shows, so bravo Sephora! (took a pic of the menu - it’s in the slide show below)
Sephora picked relevant speakers and spoke on topics that I would want to know about as a consumer
the official swag bag (varied by house keys) was nice! I took pictures … my next post will be about this
thank you SEPHORA for putting me in touch with my favorite brands, I fangirled out a lot!

WHAT I WISH FOR NEXT TIME:

please Sephora, change the way tickets are sold. I know it was designed to be like a Museum of Ice Cream, so you sectioned it out in sessions but it was hard as heck to get friends to agree and make time for the same session (this is the kind of stuff friendships breakup over!)
as a Rouge member, I would have loved to see a discount on tickets if you bought more than one session (not the same session). That way I could have seen more of my friends in other sessions
on that note, why not let us use our Rouge points towards tickets? Just a thought
it also would have been fun to have a Rouge only room. Something that celebrated your membership program
better organization of lines. For instance, I was waiting patiently to get in to see Mario but didn’t get in because lines were not clearly marked and I was in the wrong line. I would have liked to see lines clearly marked Gold, Silver, Bronze that way I knew which line to wait in
please make the food station more visible and easy to find. It wasn’t on the map in the app and I had to ask 5 people where it was … and it was all the way downstairs in a back corner
water stations to fill up our reusable bottles. This is something I am asking all events/festivals to do because I don’t want to use or buy plastic bottles ever again

TIPS FOR ATTENDING NEXT YEAR:

SEPHORiA shirt

SEPHORiA bag

get there early! We got there at 9:30 am and it took us about 45 mins to get into the venue
wear comfortable shoes - lots of lines and walking for sure
a cute outfit is a must (even if it’s just a cute top) for all the photo opportunities. Also it did get a little hot wondering around, so light layers work best
go with friends if you can - it’s honestly the best!
take lots of pics! And remember, be courteous, if you have someone take pictures of you, do them a solid and take pictures of them
keep a phone charger on hand! With all the picture taking my battery was pretty much gone mid-way through the session
no need to bring a big bag, lots of bags were provided, you could even buy one from the Sephora Merch Store (see clear bag above) which is what I did because I know it’s a growing trend that events/festivals are asking us to use see-through bags - so I know this will get used a lot!
if you buy the Bronze House Key, be prepared to wait in long lines and the possibility of not getting into masterclasses (they let Gold & Silver Keys into classes first before Bronze). If you get this key, prioritization is a must! Because sessions are short, you’ll definitely have to decide between waiting in line for a brand vs waiting in line for a masterclass - eek!
have your Sephora VIB/Rouge card or info ready as they will need it when making purchases
bring some small snacks (almonds, chocolate, etc), because sometimes the food line can be long
bring a reusable water bottle filled with water, it can get a little hot running around
if they do the same four sessions next year, morning sessions are best for the little ones because people aren’t boozing it up as much. We heard that the evening session on Saturday was party central he he he, so if you wanna party then that is the session to go to!