Sephora has announced it is implementing changes across marketing and merchandising sectors, in-store operations, and corporate workspaces to address racial bias and tackle the issue of unfair treatment. The new action plan is informed by the results of their first-ever commissioned large-scale study on Racial Bias in Retail.

“We know we are in a strong position to influence positive changes in the retail industry and society at large and it’s our responsibility to step up,” said Jean-Andre Rougeot, President and CEO of Sephora Americas, in a statement. “We know it will be a journey, but we’re committed to holding ourselves accountable to this mission for the benefit of our clients, our employees, our communities, and the retail industry at large.”

Sephora’s all-encompassing Diversity & Inclusion Heart Journey strategy includes a preliminary action plan to tackle bias across all aspects of its organization via three key areas.

Marketing and Merchandising:

• Building on Sephora’s commitment to the 15 Percent Pledge, the company will double its assortment of Black-owned brands by the end of 2021.
• Prominently feature and advertise Black-owned brands through a dedicated tab on the Sephora website, which is already in progress.
• Evolve the 2021 Accelerate brand incubator program to focus exclusively on cultivating and growing BIPOC-owned and -founded brands.
• Establish new marketing production guidelines that reinforce consideration of a diverse array of backgrounds, identities, ages, and body types in Sephora campaigns, social media, marketing, and more.
• Continue cultivating one of the industry’s most diverse influencer groups through the Sephora Squad.

The In-Store Experience and Operations:

• Roll out a new greeting system across all stores to ensure a more consistent experience for all store visitors upon entry.
• Create new training modules required for all Beauty Advisors that better define what client engagement should look like at each point in the shopping experience and what behaviors will not be tolerated.
• Establish a D&I In-Store Experience Dashboard that will provide analytics on client service and feedback to stores on a monthly basis to measure employee training compliance and efficacy.
• Implement new client feedback mechanisms to better identify incidents of bias, including those experienced by non-purchasers.
• Reduce the presence of third-party security vendors in stores and utilize more in-house specialists, with the goal of providing better client care and minimizing shoppers’ concerns of policing.
• Implement procedural and operational changes to better allow Beauty Advisors to focus solely on client service, versus other tasks that can create friction to or misperception by shoppers.

Talent and Inclusive Workplaces:

• Build new recruiting, mentorship, community, and career development programs to support the sourcing, hiring, and advancement of employees of color.
• Building on its Pull Up For Change commitment, Sephora will transparently share progress on employee representation on a bi-annual basis at Sephora.com.
• Ensure all corporate team members have D&I goals as part of their annual performance metrics.
• Update zero-tolerance policies that prohibit discrimination, harassment, and other violations of the code of conduct to ensure clearer communication, expectation, and enforcement of company policies for employees, including set outcomes, if violated.
• Ensure 100% participation with foundational Unconscious Bias training for all new hires.
• Increase the frequency and depth of employee trainings, adding new modules that offer strategies to identify bias and exhibit inclusive behaviors in the workplace.

In addition to the above, Sephora will communicate its progress against these actions on a bi-annual basis via a new D&I dedicated section of Sephora.com. Partnering with leading trade and diversity organizations Open to All, RILA, and Diversity Best Practices, Sephora will disseminate learnings and opportunities to other US retailers who may wish to enact systemic change within their own organizations.

“We’re proud of the work we’ve done thus far to make diversity, equity, and inclusion a priority for the company. We are stronger as a retail community when we are serving the needs of all of our shoppers, and hope other retailers will join us, with the ultimate goal of advancing inclusivity and improving the retail experience for all,” Rougeot added.

Read more about Sephora’s racial bias report and download it in full.