Competition for the online beauty consumer heats up. Zalando, Europe’s leading online platform for fashion and lifestyle, and Sephora have announced a strategic partnership to create the ultimate online prestige beauty destination for millions of Zalando customers. Starting in Germany in Q4 2021, the partnership is set to be rolled out to other Zalando markets as of 2022.
Zalando provides an assortment of 4,000 fashion and lifestyle brands to 42 million active customers in 20 markets across Europe, supported by exceptional convenience in delivery, payments, and returns. Sephora offers its curation of beauty brands in 35 countries and 2,000 stores globally, including more than 1,000 in Europe. Together the companies will create a new, innovative online Prestige Beauty experience for millions of Zalando customers, connecting Sephora’s beauty assortment to the Zalando platform.
David Schneider, Zalando Co-CEO, comments, “Beauty represents a huge and exciting opportunity for us, with the online beauty market still largely untapped in Europe. As a one-stop destination for fashion and lifestyle, we want to empower and inspire Zalando customers to find the perfect choice of fashion and beauty in one place and at the same time give our brand partners a platform for their digital success. Our partnership with Sephora, the go-to place for many beauty fans, will elevate the beauty offering for our customers and allow them to shop the most sought-after and exclusive beauty brands while enjoying Zalando’s excellent customer experience and convenience.”
Martin Brok, President and CEO of Sephora, adds, “Fifty years after opening its first store, Sephora once again disrupts prestige beauty by joining forces with Zalando to create the ultimate online prestige beauty destination for Zalando’s 42 million active customers. This partnership illustrates our ambition to relentlessly innovate to delight our customers better than anyone else. Zalando, which today is the most successful online fashion platform in Europe, is the ideal partner for us to continue to inspire customers. By bringing together fashion, accessories, and prestige beauty under one roof, we will offer them the best destination to ‘look great and feel great,’ in a unique premium environment. This partnership is a key step in our European growth strategy and illustrates our vision for the future of Beauty and Retail.”
Joining the Zalando Partner Program, Sephora will be the strategic partner to Zalando for its Prestige beauty offering in all European countries where the partnership is active. The long-term partnership reflects a mutual passion for innovation and providing a pioneering customer experience. The two companies share similar values of sustainability, diversity, and inclusion, with both Zalando and Sephora having made concrete long-term commitments with regards to more sustainable assortment and reducing environmental footprint in operations, as well as creating an inclusive experience for customers.
Sephora's strategic partnership with Kohl's to capture more North American consumers is set to launch in August with 200 Kohl’s locations rolling out in 2021 and plans to open a total of 850 Sephora at Kohl’s shop-in-shop concepts over the next three years.
