On Saturday, Sephora opened its first store in New Zealand amidst more than 800 Kiwi beauty fans clustered at its doors in Auckland’s CBD. To commemorate the event, a pre-opening party was held with live entertainment from some of Auckland’s hottest DJs, Soraya and Andy Heart Throb. The first 500 guests were lucky enough to walk away with a prized Zieva Première Eyeshadow Palette valued at NZ$49 alongside a magnitude of free samples that were handed out until the doors finally swung open at 9 a.m. Sephora kept their fans warm while they awaited the opening with coffee and hot chocolates available in Sephora thermoses, along with a crepe cart to serve delicious treats to those waiting in line and to pay homage to the brand’s French roots. Many beauty fanatics felt the buzz that morning on Queen Street and local fans are now thrilled that they no longer have to order products online to get their cosmetic and beauty product fix.
Leading up to the event, the black-and-white-striped double-decker Sephora beauty bus toured the country, stopping in cities such as Wellington, Hamilton and Christchurch, before finally making its way to settle in the heart of Auckland. The beauty bus allowed lucky locals to come and touch, swap and trial some of Sephora’s products, giving them a taste before the main store opened in Auckland.
The French multinational chain of department stores that was first founded in Limoges in the 1970s by Dominique Mandonnaud has been long awaited here in New Zealand. Based in Paris, the worldwide stores offer clients a hands-on relationship with an ever-changing array of brand partners that run through trusted classics to emerging favourites and the critically acclaimed Sephora Collection. Sephora offers up almost 300 brands in a variety of names from Chanel to Calvin Klein, with beauty care products ranging from cosmetics, body, face and hair care to fragrances. Now Kiwi fans are able to join in with the innovation and excellent service of Sephora which aims to unlock the beauty potential and give confidence to everything they do.
‘I can’t wait to meet the crowds at the Sephora Queen Street Auckland opening,’ Sephora’s national artistry lead Alphie Sadsad was reported saying before the event took place. ‘I can’t imagine a better way to spend a Saturday morning than grabbing a few beauty-die-hard friends and heading down to Queen Street to join the Sephora street party.’
The overwhelming excitement of Sephora’s arrival to New Zealand, with the new store now open and ready for business on Queen Street in Auckland’s CBD, shows no signs of fizzling out yet.—Meg Hamilton
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