Earlier this month, Sephora Canada found its new country GM in Thomas Haupt.
Haupt brings a breadth of leadership experience to the beauty retailer, having served as SVP at LVMH in the U.S. for the last six years. In his new role, he’ll oversee Sephora Canada’s leadership team as the brand continues to expand across the nation.
The timing of his hiring couldn’t have been better placed. The brand recently celebrated the opening of its 100th retail location, taking place in Winnipeg, MB. To say he’s got his work cut out for him would be an understatement—but for Haupt, investing in expansion and creating quality in-store experiences for consumers is a top priority (among others, he tells us below).
Here, Haupt explains what’s at the top of his to-do list as he gets comfy in his new role, the impressive lift in in-store traffic supported by the latest expansion and how the brand is keeping its ecommerce platform strong as consumers return to bricks and mortar.
You joined Sephora Canada as its Country General Manager earlier this month. What priorities have been at the top of your list, and how are you beginning to implement them?
Our mission is to deliver the best in beauty with a focus on inclusivity, innovation, ease and convenience, creating the future of beauty retail. As an experiential beauty retailer, our beauty advisors are the core of our shopping experience. Therefore, investing in brick-and-mortar expansion to ensure our in-store experience is accessible to as many Canadians as possible remains a top priority.
With 70% of our brands exclusively available at Sephora Canada, we’ll continue diversifying our market-leading brand assortment.
To meet the evolving needs of our clients, we’re also doing all we can to offer greater flexibility, with new ways to shop and payment options like Afterpay.
You’re coming from LVMH, most recently spending the last few years as SVP in the U.S. What are some important lessons you learned from the luxury retail industry that you’ll carry into Sephora?
One thing I admire about this industry is its commitment to connecting deeply with clients, on a journey of deep personalization. This is something I look forward to carrying into my work at Sephora Canada, where we’re committed to offering a beauty retail experience that is truly unique. I also believe you should never underestimate the power of a conversation, be it with an employee or a client.
Sephora just celebrated its 100th store opening, a milestone occurring in Winnipeg, MB, and being celebrated by way of events, in-store activations and gift-card giveaways. What were the results?
The results exceeded our expectations. On the day of our 100th opening, we had lineups in front of nearly every store across the country before we opened, and saw a +60% lift in store traffic when compared to last year. Most importantly, we were thrilled to see new—and existing—clients visit us.
As part of the opening, Sephora also donated $100,000 to Native Women’s Association of Canada, an ongoing partnership. Can you talk about the goals Sephora and the organization are striving for?
We were committed to marking this milestone opening by supporting an organization that works tirelessly to foster a more equitable and inclusive tomorrow.
Sephora Canada’s $100,000 donation to the Native Women’s Association of Canada is an extension of our ongoing partnership with NWAC, a National Indigenous Organization founded on the collective goal to enhance, promote and foster the social, economic, cultural and political well-being of Indigenous women.
In October 2021, we worked with NWAC to conduct a first-of-its-kind National Roundtable on Indigenous Beauty, the findings from which were later published in the Report of the National Roundtable on Indigenous Beauty in June 2022. We look forward to continuing our partnership with NWAC and to maintaining ongoing discussions, learnings and actions around Indigenous representation and beauty.
Finally, Sephora has seen rapid expansion, with 14 new store openings just this year. Has there been a shift back to consumers preferring bricks and mortar over online shopping? How is the brand keeping its ecommerce sales strong, too?
Since the easing of COVID-19 restrictions, we’ve seen our clients come back in full force both in stores and online. That said, we know our clients are looking for more flexibility to shop when and how they want, and we are leading the way with omni-convenience offerings.
For instance, clients can subscribe to our new same-day unlimited shipping service to enjoy unlimited same-day deliveries every time they shop via Sephora.ca or the Sephora App, with orders arriving in as little as two hours. We’ve also rolled out free shipping for all Beauty Insiders, with no minimum spend or discount code required.
A recent partnership with Afterpay allows Canadian customers the flexibility to pay in four easy installments when shopping online. In short, we pride ourselves on being the leading Canadian beauty authority and will continue to optimize our in-store and online offerings to meet the evolving needs of our clients.
