October 11, 2011

Sephora Friends and Family 2011 Info and Details

This info isn’t confirmed as of yet but you can visit www.sephora.com/friends and hopefully updated info will become available soon!

Thanks to my reader chibi today for giving us early deets on the Sephora Friends and Family 2011 Event.

The offer kinda sorta makes me cry this year as it’s a one time use code you can use. Where as in the past Sephora offered a universal code (ie FF2010, FF2009, etc..) this year you have to visit the site between October 20th thru November 2nd for a one time use code.

In years past I’d do an order for myself followed up by an order for Friends and Family. And heck sometimes I’d do a third order if something popped up that I wanted or something I forgot in my first order, etc….limiting me to a single code is going to really kill my joy.

Chibi also shares that the in store event will not be via coupon. Instead a photo ID and your physical BI card will have to brought to the store to get the discount.

89 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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Comments

  • Laura

    ONE TIME USE! I’m going to cry too~
    I would always make an order then a week later remember something else! ***Weep**

    • the Muse

      haha ditto laura but maybe it’s not true…or things could change when it does officially launch!

  • CK

    :/ i’m kinda bummed that it’s one time use too
    but yay for finally knowing the dates! 😀

  • Ana

    But what if you don’t have a physical VIB card? I guess they can look you up… hopefully. Hah.

    • the Muse

      go to the store and grab one ana 🙂 they’ll happy transfer your points onto a card 🙂 this is unconfirmed info so it might just be different when the official sale launches!

    • the Muse

      lol yea breyer ;-D def need to add to my cart now and think things over fully ;D but it’s not confirmed details so who knows could change!

  • Joyce

    Ew! i do not like this limit on spending/saving! Grrrrrr. Well here goes for a $1,000+ order.

    Probably not.

    But yeah probably.

    • the Muse

      it’s unconfirmed so far joyce but I’m just happy they gift us with the 20% even if it’s a single use this year 🙂

  • Lisa

    Oww, that kind of sucks 🙁 I enjoyed going to Sephora to use my F&F last time.

    • the Muse

      you can go to sephora and do F&F this time too Lisa nada stopping you 🙂

  • Jeannette

    So happy for this, I’ve been waiting so patiently. My bank account is seriously going to suffer this year.

  • Paige

    Have we ever been given a special VIB card? I’ve been a VIB for 2 years but I was never given a VIB card. I only have the regular ‘beauty insider card.’ Am I missing out on something?

    Btw, thanks Muse for giving us an update on this event.

  • Anna

    This just means my first (and only, I guess) order will contain twice as much as I originally thought I needed/wanted. You know, just to make sure everything gets in the cart. ><

  • Sara

    Uhh… I don’t have a physical card. I signed up online and Sephora never sent me an actual card so….wtf?

    Also, I’m not feeling the weird rules about the sale and codes either. What’s the reasoning behind that? Limit sales? That seems counterintuitive when your goal as a business is to make as much money as possible.

    • the Muse

      you can pick a card up in store sara, they’ll happily give you one. as for the code/sale/etc this is unconfirmed info so I’m not going to jump on the rant bandwagon just yet 🙂 on top of that, I’m simply grateful they even offer us 20% off even if it turns into a one time use 🙂

      • Sara

        That’s true, Muse, no need to jump on the ranty wagon yet. Frankly, I haven’t made the best choices with the 20% off, and they didn’t do it I’d probably just skip buying things I was on the fence about owning. :p And their own brand. I just can’t pay the retail sticker on Sephora’s house brand. :p Even though the jumbo liner pencils are the tits.

        We shall wait and see. October 20th isn’t that far away. 🙂

  • Jenn

    I’m slightly confused Muse…do we get to use it once online…and then if we have a store nearby we can use it in-store once as well? There was some stuff not online I was hoping to get in store. Only getting a one time only purchase kinda sucks for that reason. :-/ Oh well I’ll get as much as I can available! And don’t forget to use rebates.com or mrrebates.com for 5% back on your purchase also! 😉

    • the Muse

      can’t confirm that one jenn but imagine you can use it once in store, once online maybe? This is all unconfirmed so let’s hope it’s the same it’s always been ;-D would make life easier!

      • Jenn

        I must ask, since I may only get once purchase chance…would you recommend Super brightening or moisturizing activator?? I can’t decide!

          • Jenn

            Thanks Muse 🙂 I just read on the sephora FB page that F&F is only going to be available to actual people who know someone who works there? They have cards/fliers to give to friends an family?

  • Noelle

    Not what I was hoping for,but hey 20% is still great. I just have to separate what I REALLY want. Which will more than likely be my entire list haha.

    This isn’t restricted to VIB’s is it? Can regular beauty card holders qualify as well?

  • Maggie

    Ugh, that’s so lame! I work at Sephora, so I’ll pester the higher-ups and see if I can get any info to confirm whether or not it’ll be a one-time use dealie. I’ll let you know if I find out anything.

  • Kathleen

    Ahhhh now I am so stressed about what to order! I’m on a tight budget and obviously with holidays coming up I need money to spend on the ones I love. But I’m thinking one of the Fresh Sugar Lip Treatments, and a Bobbi Brown Gel Eyeliner. I know my list has changed ha but I dropped the Naked Palette and figured it’d be more worth it to buy a Eau de Toilette of Princess instead of the rollerball when I have more money, because unless I tell someone to sniff my wrist you can’t really smell rollerball fragrances on me, haha. Any recommendations for someone who’s relatively new to beauty?

    Also, this is only my second time commenting but I’ve read your blog for a while and really love it (:

  • chibi

    *correction, not actual BI card, its the actual Promo card that you get from an employee that will be used.

    BUT hopefully they change it before it launches because it’s complicated and unfair.

  • catazure

    Thanks for the heads’ up, Muse! I shop Sephora on line regularly and had no idea about this.

  • Linda

    I wonder how that will affect online purchases? It seems that it would limit the sale to stores only. Maybe I’m missing something here but I can’t believe that they would limit themselves like that.

  • Regina

    This just means I’ll have a huge order and return half of it ’cause I always forget stuff and go back for a second time to shop. I’ve been plotting out my wishlist and hoping for the best!

  • kimkats

    Sooooo…. sephora’s going to complicate matters by giving everyone a different code??? That is going to be a farkin’ nightmare for them, I would think…. I also wonder why they’re making it a one use only thing… I know they raked in buckets of cash by leaving it wide open the last several years… This doesn’t sound like good planning for them…

    I, on the other hand, have my list at the ready! ‘Course, it will likely be added to up to the moment I click “place order”

    I’ll be interested to see if this changes by the time they come upon the start of the sale…. Seems like the first couple hours the site almost crashes because of so many orders – wonder if that’ll happen again this year?
    Thanks for the most recent info, Muse!! We’ll sit tight and see what changes between now and then!

  • Anne

    arrrrggghhh Why oh WHY can’t we have Sephora in the UK?!!!! I don’t understand???!!! Sulk, sulk.

  • Lulu

    I just went to Sephora in JCPenney and asked if they would be participating in the F&F event – they are not. I’ve got several gift cards that I can only use there, so was hoping against the odds…

    The other bad news was that they don’t carry Kate Somerville’s Exfolikate, which was why I asked for Sephora giftcards for my birthday to begin with. So guess that will be my online purchase for F&F.

  • Audrey H.

    The SA a Sephora told me I’d need an ID and the name of the Sephora employee who is my friend/family in order to get the sale pricing in the actual store. This was this past Saturday. I was hoping she was misinformed. Thanks for keeping us all up to date, pins & needles stuff lol!

  • AZ

    Do you think the in store “coupon” aka your ID can work multiple times or is that also one time only o.O this whole one use coupon code thing is frustrating.. but its probably good for my wallet since for the past two or three years I’ve definitely been placing way too many orders..

  • Karrie

    I’m sad that it’s one time use.
    I usually place a second order because I forgot something.
    I bet it helps them save on shipping.
    When I place my order, I make sure to spend enough to get free shipping.

  • Elaina

    I’ve been adding things to my cart since you reminded us about this in your post last week! Hubby doesn’t know yet *wink wink* But I added a cologne set for him…. that should get me off the hook, right?!? Lol Thank you so much for the heads up on the sale!!! I’m so glad I waited till now to get the Clarisonic (and about $500 worth of other goodies) 🙂 I agree with you and others that it’s a great time to buy stocking stuffers too!!! Thanks again, Muse!!!!

  • Majick

    Well, I’m happy for the 20% off but limiting me to one order is going to limit Sephora’s sale. I always forget something after I hit the submit button. If that happens this year I’ll just use one of the other coupons I get from the spa sights. I bet they are banking on everyone just buying everything and anything so they don’t forget. But I also bet they will have more returns than they ever wanted to see.

    Maybe they are trying to save on shipping and giving away samples?
    ahh well…

  • reeder

    Thanks for the head’s up muse! Time to review my order and check out the cashback offers for Sephora.com. I did see 12 pts/$1 for Chase ultimate rewards and sometimes ebates/mrrebates has 8% specials.

  • Jenna

    Hello! Will you be posting your list ideas for us to peek at? I love checking out what other people are planning. Really hope it is not a one time use code, was planning on doing one order per pay day LOL! Thanks!

  • victoria

    Just went to Sephora today and asked a couple of the employee’s about it! They seemed VERY reluctant( my Sephora has very unfriendly associates 🙁 ) to talk about it, but the lady said she believes it’s just a one time ordeal! It’s a stinker but how great is it that they even offer that to us!

  • Laura

    I must ask – F&F is only for VIB???
    Because we could always open up another account with a different email – to get another 20% off, right?

  • Heather

    So if we have to present out ID in store will we be able to use our one time use code online and also make a purchase in store. Thirs some online exclusive things I cant get instore with my merchandise credit and was going to order online.

    • Theresa

      I too have gone to the Sephora near my home. Okay, the associates at my Sephora are always friendly and helpful. It seemed like some of the staffs have no knowledge about how the F&F works, kept checking with one guy ( seems like he’s either very senior or may even be the manager there). He told me i can make multiple purchases at the store and even online. He gave me 2 F&F cards 😀 I have gone to Sephora’s Facebook and seems like the moderator kept saying the F&F are really an invite by
      their associates and not exactly for VIBs or Beauty Insiders. Anyhow, I am sure the store associate will be happy to give out one of the 20% card, and do go to the website as first provided by Muse 🙂

  • Dawn

    This just posted on Sephora (www.sephoralove.com/friendsandfamily/):

    * Offer valid 10/20/11 through 11/2/11 at 11:59 pm PST/PDT with any merchandise order on sephora.com. Online promo code cannot be used in retail stores or sephora inside jcpenney. Enter your unique promotion code during checkout to receive 20% off your entire online merchandise purchase. Promo code may be only be used once, is non-transferable, is not valid on previous purchases, on Canadian online purchases, nor with the purchase of eGift certificates or gift cards. Only one promo code per email address and only five email addresses per computer. Cannot be used in conjunction with other promotions/offers. Sephora reserves the right to end or change this promotion offer at any time. By providing your e-mail address, you agree to receive e-mail announcements in accordance with our privacy policy.

  • christine

    hey guys any news regarding this? oct 20 is coming up really soon and im so confused about this.

  • rach

    what? 🙁 you have to have an employee give you the card? im so bummed! i really dont like ordering online just cause im impatient for the package to arrive. please let us know if they change it or anything cause no one i know works at sephora! thank you

    • Jenn

      If you spend over 50 dollars and qualify for free shipping you can spend and extra 3 dollars for 3 day shipping. I get my packages fast that way. Better than nothing!

  • Laura

    Hey muse! Ulta’s 20% F & F starts this week too!

    I got my coupon – see?

  • Hannah

    Awww… this is so sad. I was planning on making several transactions with the online. It’s too bad we can’t use it more then once. I’m going to plan to buy things I wouldn’t normally buy at full price.

    I will take advantage of the in store sale for Beauty Insiders. So sad, and a little disappointed.

  • Jenna

    UPDATE: I just got off the phone with Sephora and they said that is sale is actually a TRUE Friends and Family only sale. An employee actually has to give you a card. The rep said unless you are friends with an employee and can call them to get you a card you won’t be getting in on the sale. I have heard rumor that there will be an event in November for VIB’s but have not heard any details. SO DISAPPOINTING! I had $230 in my cart ready and now I think I’ll just keep it in the bank.

    • the Muse

      Jenna I wouldn’t take that as being correct. Sephora has always says that when you call them and they in most cases they are incorrect so take whatever they told you with a grain of salt. Creating a webpage for the event seems foolish if it’s open ONLY to friends and family members. I’ve had people contacting Sephora for years asking about the FF event and always getting the same reply and the sale went on as planned so I would def take whatever they said with a grain of salt…that is prob completely false and incorrect information.

      • Jenna

        I hope so! They would miss out on SO MANY customers if they made it that way! Thanks Muse for giving some hope!

        • the Muse

          no problem believe me it’s prob completely false I find the CS isn’t very knowledgeable via phone about the FF event either that or they play dumb!

          • Nina

            I hate to tell you all this but it’s true – you must get a card from a sales associate and the associates I spoke to said they were given very few cards (3-6 each)! I called the Sephora 877 number and they said the same thing – I am very disgusted and don’t want to shop there at all at this point. So many other places offer beauty brands at a discount now!

          • the Muse

            hi nina an employee from sephora has commented here with details on the friends and family. There will be a FF event you’re getting wrong info. Hope this helps!

  • Jenna

    ANOTHER UPDATE: Call your local store!! I spoke with the store manager and she said she was given 10 friends cards and she has not given any away yet so I am going to go pick one up today before she is off work. I think it can only be used IN STORE though. So some things that are online only I will miss out on.

    • Jenna

      Hopefully this is false. I am going to pick it up just in case. Maybe I will be able to use one code in store still and get another for online (wishful thinking haha).

      • the Muse

        I think it’s a good chance they are wrong…for some reason they just give false info with FF every year!

  • rach

    Check out Sephora’s facebook page :/ everyone is complaining because i guess it is only is for friends and family of the employees >:( im upset

    • Nina

      I suggest we (beauty blogging community and fans) start a boycott! If Sephora doesn’t consider us worthy of being a “friend or family” then let’s not shop there – hit them in the pocketbook!

      • the Muse

        nina please see the comments explaining the situation as there will be an FF hope this helps!

        • Nina

          I understand there will be an online FF and I really appreciate that you posted the link for the page. But I have been told by employees in the stores that they do not have cards to give out to the “frequent shoppers” because they were given so few and they gave them to their own friends. I am hoping you are correct that this is just a big dust-up over nothing, but in past years I never heard this.

          • the Muse

            nina I wouldn’t worry too much. Even if it is online at the least we get that and it’s a great deal if so 🙂

          • Jenna

            UPDATE: Ok so I picked the FF Card from the store manager. First of all, the card has NO CODE on it. It says go to that site (sephora.com/friends) and you can get a link there. Well, she did not take my info, so there is NO WAY this sale is only FF. To get the discount IN STORE you will need one of these cards. But, everyone will be able to enjoy the sale online. I called Sephora again to ask if I could use the card in store and online code and the person I spoke with this time said Sephora does not tell them ANYTHING. He wouldn’t even tell me what time it started. Well, in any case, nothing to worry about. You WILL be able to order with the discount code online. GEEZ, why do they make it SO difficult! LOL Sorry Muse, we were probably giving you a headache today! haha

          • the Muse

            no worries jenna 🙂 I think people are freaking out over nothing at all as the sale is def on I don’t doubt it ;-D last year people had created the same rumors about the sale being canceled and only for friends and family etc…so this is old hat for me ;-D I’m glad you got it all sorted! Have a great time shopping!

  • TV

    No its open to everyone! Just enter your email at the site and it gives you a promo code!!

  • Christine

    Hmm, I think it’s on now, I see a textfield for your email address on the page you linked, Muse. Too bad I’m Canadian 🙁