Most women and some gay men have heard of Sephora. Just about every mall has a Sephora. It’s a store that specializes in beauty and cosmetic products. They carry everything from hair products to designer makeup. ULTA is a store that is just like Sephora with minor differences. I’ve shopped at both stores and have noticed certain things about these stores that make me favor one over the other.
First off both stores carry designer makeup, fragrances and hair products but only ULTA carries drug store brands and affordable brands that are hard to find too. For this reason I tend to visit ULTA more often. Sephora comes off as being a bit pretentious but it has nothing to do with their sales associates. Both stores have very friendly and attentive sale associates but because Sephora only carries designer brands it’s hard to go into their store and not wind up spending close to $100 on a few items. It’s definitely not a budget friendly store. One point for ULTA.
ULTA may carry more affordable brands along side their designer brands but Sephora is easy to find. I don’t know of a mall that doesn’t have a Sephora store in it. There also appears to be more Sephora stores, as far as I can observe, than ULTA stores. Aside from being located in the mall you can often find their stores as a stand alone, usually in a shopping center. One point for Sephora for having many stores and being easy to find.
Both stores offer freebies when you buy an item and both stores have special sales. Of course if you’re not into makeup, or a man, both stores have a good selection of other beauty products to choose from. Sephora and ULTA have fragrances, beauty products for the skin as well as hair products but this point goes to ULTA for having a much bigger selection of hair and beauty products. From what I’ve seen and the many Sephora and ULTA stores I’ve visited, ULTA has a much more extensive collection of skin care products because they carry non-designer brands too. They also carry little stuff like hair clips, brushes, hair extensions and a much wider selection of hair care products than Sephora, again because they also carry non-designer and professional brands.
What Sephora has over ULTA is that they are a tad more customer friendly in that they seem extremely eager to help. It seems as though there are a certain group of sales associates that are specifically on the floor to aid customers while the others stay behind the register. They also have jars of disposable mascara wands, eye shadow applicators and lip gloss/lipstick wands around every corner for customers to try out their products. For every product that they sell they have a sample available which is so convenient for shoppers. ULTA doesn’t have that.
Sephora and ULTA are pretty equal as a store but I prefer ULTA only because it’s convenient for me. The fact that they carry non-designer brands along side designer brands makes it easier for me to compare products and prices without leaving the store. I able to look around to see what products are all out there and compare, seeing which product is best for my budget.
