October 22, 2012

Sephora Friends and Family 2012: Don’t Panic!

Updated info on when the Sephora Friends and Family 2012 Sale begins can be found by clicking here!

Ok, so yes, Sephora has indeed said there will be no Friends and Family Event this year. I read through Facebook and was shocked at the insanity over there.

I admit I do laugh when people are leaving comments like, “I’ll NEVER SHOP at Sephora again”! Dude, chill…

Sephora said the same thing last year and they ended up doing a VIB 20% Off closer to the Holidays. So please, don’t panic….right now odd codes are circulating because indeed the Friends and Family Event is taking place right now if you know an employee that works at Sephora. Many people are trying to guess the code, etc…unlike years past, where the code was easy to guess, Sephora has randomized the promo codes so different ones exist.

Don’t bother giving yourself a headache trying to guess it.

Just stay calm, don’t panic, hold tight to your towels, and wait for Sephora to announce the Friends and Family event for VIBs because I do believe they won’t leave us out in the cold.

58 Comments

About the Muse

Isabella MuseIsabella is just an average everyday geeky girl who doesn’t blend her eyeshadow correctly, wears too much blush, and hopes she never finds her holy grail products because she likes the thrill of the chase so much. Her mission is to bring you super honest reviews on makeup, skincare, fragrance and all things beauty. She’s in no way an expert on the topic and she sure as hell isn’t a super model. But she’s passionate about makeup and is seeking like-minded individuals that like pina coladas, getting caught in the rain, and ones that enjoy spending hundreds of dollars at Sephora without feeling buyer’s remorse. If you’re that person feel free to reach out and leave a comment or follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Bloglovin‘.

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    • the Muse

      absolutely. sephora doesn’t “owe” us anything. It seems like everyone is going a little crazy and needs to relax ;-D worst comes to worst we can just shop FF at a variety of sites..Tarte always has one around the holiday as does other brands.

    • Dawn

      Inside Cast Member Tip: VIB promotion runs 11/8-11/12 and then another VIB/BI promotion runs 11/29-12/11. Enjoy!

  • Katia

    i like it better this way. Friends and family is for Sephora employee FRIENDS and FAMILY members, people. If you are VIB, we’ll get our own code soon enough 🙂

  • Littlecreek

    But I was ready to run weeping through the streets! I even have a clip from my sonogram where Steve is flailing tiny baby arms. LOL 😉

    And thank you for the Hitchhikers reference, I heart you. Also reminds me that I bought a book of the entire series in one brick and I need to get to reading. I’ve haven’t read anything but the first!

    • the Muse

      LOL! ;-D seriously you don’t have to run weeping down the street ;-D lol I promise there will be some sort of discount although code name steve with flailing arms might just convince sephora to do a vib to see that cuteness ;-D omg what are you waiting for? It’s one of my fav memories from childhood, I’ve reread it too many times to count! also see the BBC version of it, it’s cheesy fun!

  • Vanilla

    Thanks for the update Muse!

    I too, am not entirely phased by this whole thing even though I am hearing outcries from the general public. I hate to say it, but it’s not such a big deal when many of the individual companies have their own FF sale that offers 15-30% off. The only customers that I see getting the short end of the stick are non-American customers where the companies do not offer shipping outside of the US or take non-American CCs. Never shop at Sephora again because they decided not to have a public sale? That’s blasphemy… Sephora offers such a wide selection of brands with sale items year round with convenient/accessible online shopping and the best return policy you could dream of, so I doubt this will effect their sales much. I’m also confident that they will give some sort of worthwhile promotion to VIBs, so if you’re a member I would just chill out and wait patiently. It’s not hard to get VIB status either… if you find it hard to reach $350 in a calendar year, you can consider sharing a membership with someone in your family or a friend. Personally, I spend enough in that friggin’ store enough for 3 VIB statuses. That 20% discount makes a HUGE difference, but I’m not gonna get my panties all in a bunch if it doesn’t happen.

    • the Muse

      hey vanilla good attitude ;-D seriously, people are going a little nutty, calm down I’m positive they will give 20% off to vib’ers closer the Holiday I don’t doubt it ;-D

    • Marta

      Lol. I love The Hitchhiker’s Guide novels. Between that and Doctor Who, I don’t mind England keeping Gibraltar and the Faulklands. Poor Marvin. Poor Ponds. 🙁 We had some good laughs though.
      Well, international costumers aren’t happy anyway, because they can’t buy at Sephora online either. I can buy from the Spanish Sephora, with a pricing of +20%, less brands and no online shopping. I’ve never gotten code discounts, but they have a points system and every once in a while in shop discounts. Anyway, I consider beauty products a privilege, not a right, so if sometimes we need to wait for a sale to buy what we want that’s ok!

  • deliah

    While I definitely don’t think it’s worth getting all up in a bunch over, being from eastern Canada… we don’t get the sales like you guys do. The individual companies either don’t ship to Canada, charge more than the product for international shipping, don’t offer their sales outside of the US, etc etc. Also – I don’t know about big cities like Toronto, but out here our one and only Sephora doesn’t have sale items/racks. I’ve seen one sale here, and it was only on about 10 different items that they had in overstock and were discontinuing anyway. Plus — everything is incredibly marked up already, even though our dollar is on par with yours. Having that 15% off (we only got 15% off last)… and you have to spend $500 to be a VIB instead of $350… then add another 15% tax on top of it… that sale means A LOT here.

    • the Muse

      deliah, def understand how high Canadian prices are as well as Europe. But no worries, I’m positive they’ll be doing 15% off again this year, hopefully you reached VIB status to take advantage of it.

      • deliah

        Haha no I didn’t as I’m a starving student, but one of my friends did so a bunch of us are hopping on her bandwagon 😛

  • Christy

    I’m not overly upset as they’re pretty good to us VIBers but I am bummed that the 20% off weekend won’t coincide with my trip to Seattle in November. I’m from Canada where we routinely spend up to $20 more per palette and average $5 per item compared to the US, so I was hoping for some major savings 🙁 Of course that won’t stop me from stocking up anyways, I just won’t be getting the bonus 20% discount.

  • Ljana

    They did their annual sale in Europe just as they always do. It’s a bit different though – 20% off on everything, 30% on Sephora brand products, in-store, deducted at check-out, usually lasts 2 days in October and/or May. They pick the dates and then advertise them to death, so you’re bound to hear about it if you’re into beauty at all.
    I doubt this is helpful because they may have different policies for different markets, but for what it’s worth, they haven’t changed their sale policy in Europe.
    Fingers crossed for you guys in the US!

    • the Muse

      ljana whoa awesome on 30% on sephora, wish they did that hear, typically 20% for VIB and BI 15%!

    • Lulle

      They don’t have a Europe wide sale, it’s different in every country. When I was in France, they sent 20% off coupons to their preferred customers card holders (equivalent of BI) twice a year, so this sale was not public.
      But there was always a 20% off code valid online only around the corner, so I almost never paid full price for the products I was buying.

      When I moved to the US, I was surprised that Sephora here doesn’t have more discounts.

      Oh, and Sephora US does not ship internationally (except for Canada), so beauty addicts outside North-America have never been able to enjoy the US FF sale anyway.

      This is my first year here and ‘t was supposed to be my first time with the FF sale, so yeah, I got EXCITED, and now I’m mildly pissed. Considering I’m not a VIB, their special offers around the holidays will probably do nothing for me 🙁

  • katie

    Its not a huge deal to me but as beauty insider I was looking forward to the 20% off. I am assuming that BIs will get 15% off in the november sale and have been buying from other stores that have had 20% off sales lately. I will still spend quite a bit at the sephora sale and become a VIB but a couple hundred went to other stores instead of sephora this year.

  • Rose

    omg thanks for posting this! The public outcry is ridiculous. People need to stop feeling entitled to something from Sephora or any other company. This happens everytime Sephora has a discount. Some complain at not having discount others complain that discount is not enough. You can’t please everyone. Seriously every beauty brand has some sorta holiday event during this time. Sephora isn’t the only source for products. I’m a VIB and love earning points but if a brand is directly offering me a discount I’ll purchase from them. Sephora has been and will always be a fantastic one-stop shop for everything so, I hardly doubt that they’d be hurt by losing customers over this F&F event. Holidays result in massive sales regardless of discounts. Keep in mind there is the VIB event in Nov and they’ll likely appease regular BI’s as well. Recall that last year in early December they sent ou $15/$20 off $50 purchase cards to BI and VIBs

    • the Muse

      agreed sephora isn’t the only place to get discounts, you have to be a smart consumer, there are TONS of sales to take advantage of particularly around the holidays. The crazy sense of entitlement really bugs me….:(

  • Saira

    Hey Muse!
    So I went to sephora on Friday and the girl confirmed that they will do a VIB 20% off for us around November 11th 🙂 I have my list ready to go!!!

    • the Muse

      aw great! I knew it saira ;-D people just have to learn to be patient…absurd they way they are leaving such rude comments on Sephora’s FB 🙁

  • K.B.

    I don’t blame Sephora for keeping the Friends and Family Sale for actual friends and family of employees. Sephora was gracious enough to honor the orders of everyone (including myself) who took advantage of the F&F sale last year, even though it resulted in people clearing the figurative and literal shelves. I would love to know how much money Sephora lost in last year’s sale as a result of returned products. What happens to products that are returned? Do they just get thrown away (I mean, they obviously can’t re-sell them)? I don’t begrudge people the money they spend on anything (their money, their choice), but I watched several haul videos from last year’s sale, and I was shocked at how crazy people went just because a discount was given. I’m a VIB (several times over, although I’m sure that’s true for most of us who visit this site lol), and Sephora always rewards my loyalty, so I’ll just hold tight until next month.

  • Danielle

    I seriously cannot believe the uproar about this. Look, I’m a beauty junkie who spends a big chunk of my income at Sephora and I’ve gladly participated in every F&F sale past, but I’m sorry ladies, this is ridiculous. No one is entitled to a sale and the folks throwing a fit over this seriously need to get their priorities straight and maybe grow up a little. I keep seeing people post about having $600 of stuff in their cart that they now will buy elsewhere because Sephora mistreats their customers and it just blows my mind; I’m sorry you have to pay retail for makeup that you probably don’t even need in the first place.

    Don’t get me wrong, I was bummed that I wouldn’t be able to partake in the sale this year but the entitlement culture we live in is totally revolting.

  • breyerchic04

    I’ve been expecting the $15 off thing for Beauty Insiders after Thanksgiving like they’ve had the past two years. Not a bad deal if you’re just placing a small/medium order.

    I’m not a VIbuyer, so I would feel the tiniest bit left out if they did something just for them, but I’d live.

  • Jennifer

    I’m just a beauty insider…hopefully we can get a good deal too. I would most likely be VIB status if sephora didn’t completely screw that up. Weird things were happening with my card and I found out that the card i’ve had for YEARS was associated with someone else’s name! So they basically gave my number to someone else. And she would use the points I collected. So I started a new account and now i’m a measly BI with 75 points to my name. Even after the crappy customer service (it took months and countless e-mails and phonecalls to finally fix the situation), I still shop at Sephora.

  • Louise

    I completely and utterly agree with you, Muse. The sense of entitlement people have is simultaneously amusing and sad. And over MAKEUP, no less. Whoever mans the Sephora page deserves a raise; he/she is so kind, patient, and respectful!

    • the Muse

      amen to that they’ve been very gracious on the fb page. I dunno why people are going nuts b/c they know, if they shop sephora, that last year the same chaos was going on and sephora granted an FF in November to VIB/BIs.

  • Brit

    I don’t mind the uproar and backlash of sephora loyal members. Majority of members expect it, is it wrong to expect? Not necessarily when they offer something each year and when a lot of consumers wait to make purchases at sephora at a discounted price. Sure people can go to other sites, but whats wrong with making it at their favorite beauty chain where you can get free shipping, points and samples along with your purchase? Anyways, I can’t deal with beauty junkies saying how people need to grow up and get their priorities in check. anywhoot, shop at nordstrom. I get all of my beauty stuff there cause their deals are far better than samples at sephora.

    • the Muse

      brit it’s actually an event meant for employees so everyone getting into an uproar about something that wasn’t event intended for them to begin with isn’t really justified. I’m not telling anyone to grow up just telling people to keep calm, carry on, and don’t worry an FF for non employees is surely on the way 🙂

    • Danielle

      Expecting it because it has happened in years past is understandable and makes sense, expecting it because you feel Sephora owes you something is just entitlement.

  • Sara Elisabeth

    My wallet would a lot happier if there was no FF sale this year, but I am a VIB. So I will end up buying if there is a sale. Actually, they’d be doing me a favor if there was no sale this year.

  • Adray

    My only gripe with Sephora regarding this whole fiasco, is that they didn’t inform anyone about not doing the sale. I saw for myself, so many people ask if they were having the sale on their Facebook and they were so vague about it and kept suggesting that spin the wheel thing. I think that’s why people are so upset. I was running low on my skincare and already made my list and patiently waited, so I was really disappointed they didnt honor the sale. At least inform us, Sephora! On the other hand, Sephora doesn’t owe us consumers anything, and honoring the sale for these few years has been a way of showing their appreciation for us, granted they could have delivered the message about not doing it this year a bit better, they were still doing something nice for us. I’m just going to wait for the VIB sale and make my purchases then. I hope they have something good for BIs too because no everyone is a VIB.

    **sidenote, since I am running low on my skin care, I dropped into a Sephora today and got some samples of my products, and the lady was so friendly, and it just reminded me of why I love Sephora so much 🙂 I’m sure they have plenty of great things in store for us, ladies!

    • mon

      Completely agree with you here. They don’t owe us consumers anything. I also agree that they were very vague about if the whole sale was happening for the rest of us or not and should’ve cleared things up right away.

  • Saiba

    I think some people are legitimately upset for some good reason and then others go off the deep end for no good reason. Some people skipped out on the UD friends and family sale because they were waiting for Sephora’s so they could get points and all that they offer. But Sephora was really quiet about if they were going to do the sale again this year or not, always had vague answers. So most people waited patiently anyway. If they had said something sooner certain people “may” not complain (though I still think they would anyway). Personally, I don’t give. I’m a BI not a VIB but I’m not crying a river because Sephora decided to keep it for employees, that’s their business and they don’t owe me or anyone else anything imo. Except maybe their employees lol. But I CAN see why some are upset.

    • Lyn

      I agree with you Saiba. Perhaps if they were upfront from the start and would be more communicative to their customers people would be more understanding, but as usual, Sephora is always so vague.

      That’s great for many of you who are VIBs, but I am not, and I know I am not alone. My budget is too tight to be one right now. Looking forward to that 20% would have helped my budget. Are they going to do anything for Beauty Insiders, not just VIBs?

      I do think it’s kind of pathetic that they can’t do a few discount sales per year and make such a big deal about doing it. It would probably make them more sales, so I don’t see the logic in their thinking. Whatever… I’m not going to storm their Facebook page, but I am liking them less as time goes on.

  • dangster

    Ugh. These girls (too immature to be women) who loudly proclaim that they’ll take their business elsewhere are just as bad as the people who are still boycotting UD for even DARING to consider doing business in China. Seriously, they need to grow up and lose their sense of entitlement. Yeah I said it, GROW UP. No company is perfect and obviously these girls aren’t either.

    • ago

      I don’t think there is anything wrong with choosing not to shop at Sephora if you disagree with their policies. I don’t feel “entitled” to participate in their Friends and Family sale, but if they decide not to include loyal customers that have participated in the past, it does make me feel less positive toward their company. Why should Sephora be “entitled” to my business? As a customer I am well within my rights to choose to spend my hard earned dollars at a different retailer. What’s wrong with that? I fail to see how that makes me immature or means that I need to “grow up”.

  • Cookie

    I just made VIB status. (Haven’t worn makeup in years and recently started again — which is how I found your site Muse! I was looking for a review.) Does anyone know if this sale will be online or in-store? Is it one-time only or can we go back for seconds (You know, in case we missed something. Or read a review of the Next-Big-Thing! Talkin’ to you, M!) 🙂

    • the Muse

      yay cookie glad you found me 😀 it’s typically both…in years passed it allowed you to do more than one online order but not sure about this year…! I’ll def post about it when I know more though ;D

  • cat

    I was disappointed when everyone was basically doing the internet equivalent of shouting from the rooftops that there was going to be no sale whatsoever but I certainly wasn’t up in arms about it. Honestly, I still have no idea what I want to get. I have things I’m interested in but I’m not sure if I’m really in love with them or if I’ll just want to purchase them because of the sale and so I can qualify for VIB status. While I do love makeup, my routine is so low-key that it seems a bit of a waste to buy a ton of makeup I won’t have time to use.

  • blueraccoon

    So that’s great, if you’re a VIB (I am). But I know people who aren’t, who were counting on this sale, and are now possibly left out in the cold. I don’t think Sephora “owes” its customers a sale. However, with most major beauty lines having a 20% off sale at some point, it makes sense that they would do one as well. I think their vagueness in responding is really what’s upset people–like, if they had just come out and said “No, we’re not having F&F, please play Spin to Win and we’ll have other offers” it’d be one thing, but they didn’t really give any kind of answer, and that’s aggravating, especially for people who maybe skipped the UD sale to buy at Sephora instead and just got screwed. (Don’t get me started on the entire crapfest that was Spin to Win.)

    I think their communication to customers pretty much sucked during this whole thing, and that’s what has me upset. I think they could have done a much better job about letting people know what was going on and didn’t. Am I going to stop shopping at a store because they didn’t have a sale? No, but I’m going to be more likely to look at stores and brands that DO have regular sales/promotions and are clear-cut about what’s going on and when. Normally I just shop at Sephora because I’m a VIB and I like getting the points and rewards and things, but if I can get 20% off somewhere else, or if I can get a cool GWP at, say, Nordstrom’s, maybe the points aren’t as important.

  • Quinctia

    Eh, they already kind of rarely have promotions, which is how I ended up platinum at Ulta and never near VIB at Sephora. If they’re going to publicly announce there’s no sale at all this year, I’m not going to look twice and go use my 20% at Ulta to get the same stuff I could’ve bought from them…plus hair care…plus skin care…plus cheap drugstore makeup…and possibly plus warm slipper socks if they’ve gotten them back in for winter! 😉

    • Wendy A.

      I’m getting an Ulta near my house within the next month and you stole the thought out of my mind girl.

  • Brooke Lehman

    I’m bummed because I skipped the Urban Decay F&F thinking I would wait til Sephora’s F&F to earn my beauty points. Tarte does F&F but never on the good stuff!

  • Lyn

    Is there something really wrong with expecting a company to step up and to communicate with its customers? I don’t think so. Companies will not change how they treat people unless people speak up and say something.

    Your comment, Dangster, was a little harsh. Why do you care what others do or think? Goodness, lighten up.

    The main point of what people have a problem with is how Sephora went about everything. It’s okay to not agree with that. In this economy, if a company is not honoring its customers, then one has every right to go and give their business elsewhere. It’s the customer who keeps them in business in the first place.

    Blueraccoon, you make a good point. These deluxe samples (which I’ve not ever even gotten yet because Sephora can’t get my points straight and I’m tired of calling them about it) – are they really worth it? I don’t think so, either. A good gift with purchase would be a better way to go. I’m going to start shopping elsewhere myself. just because it would be smarter.

  • Majick

    Well, since I’m old school, I never even visit the FB page so this is the first I’m hearing of this (thank goodness for you Muse LOL). Frankly I don’t think corporations are people and I don’t like them pretending to be my friend. I stopped liking “anything” (except I think I did like you Muse – I dont’ know this site is different) because it opened my profile to a bunch of people I didn’t need bothering me. (fixed that eventually)

    That said, I’m glad I got my ocho loco at the UD F&F. I picked up most of my other “needs” at Ulta F&F (thank you my rockin’ ladies at store 125).

    I rarely even visit Sephora’s website since they changed the look. Yeah, I know, I hated it then and only marginally find the time to browse there now. THe economy and living on 1 salary for a while has curbed a major portion of my “beauty junkie” buying. I do however need certain products that are not available at ulta and was waiting for F&F to buy them from Sephora – with maybe a treat. Now, I’m not sure what to do. Probably use one of the million 20% off emails I get from Spalook, SKinstore, etc.

    BTW – I did try the SPIN the WHEEL thing and it just hosed up my computer. So, I didn’t even see what I would have won.

    I agree it would be refreshing if companies wouldn’t be so vague but that’s marketing my dear. “QUICK! Buy it now because in 10 minutes the price is going to go up or it will sell out and you won’t EVER be able to get it again.” REALLY? ok then, keep it. (Maybe my old self is getting smarter.)

    I do still have a gift card for $15 so at least that will take something off my $50 order.

    • the Muse

      I think thank you Majick? LOL 🙂 I’m def not a corporation and def consider you all friends extended family ;-D

  • Efrain

    This is the moment when I can’t understand Americans, you have a sales or discounts every time in many stores including Sephora, here in Mexico is awkward to see a really good deal. Sephora has only been opened for one year and I don’t think they will get us discounts (If it happens I’ll eat my words).

  • Natasha

    Just got word today through my mom that the VIB 20% off sale will be from Nov. 18 until Nov. 31. She (my mom) went to Sephora today and was told so by an employee.

  • Jaz

    I wasnt too upset about the lack of F&F sale. I am a BI , not VIB – frankly I would rather not spend my monthly makeup allowance on one or two items LOL. I am glad that they will be doing the sale in November , because I really want the Vice palette and the Ocho Loco set , and I HATE ulta.

  • catazure

    I suggest that ya’ll join ebates.com; shopping through the site can get you up to 6% off at Sephora.
    If they do offer FF in November, I’ll go through the e and get an extra break:)
    Thanks for the info, Muse!

  • Alicia

    I’m “mildly annoyed”, but *only* in the sense that many cosmetics are ridiculously expensive and never go on sale except during events like these. For me, a sale code is the only way I’ll try a new, high-end product without massive research first. While I have access to a brick and mortar Sephora, it carries almost none of the niche brands I might normally try with a coupon or a code. That being said, both a company and a consumer have the right to offer sales/shop how they choose.