Sephora

The company was founded in Limoges, France in 1969 and is currently based in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France. Since 1996, Sephora has been owned by the luxury conglomerate LVMH since 1997. Sephora was first launched in Paris in August 1970. It is named after the biblical figure Zipporah (French: Séphora), wife of Moses. In 1993, Dominique Mandonnaud acquired Sephora and merged it with his own perfume chain under the Sephora brand. Mandonnaud is credited with designing and executing Sephora's "assisted self-service" sales experience, which distinguished itself from standard retail models for cosmetics by encouraging its primarily female customer base to test products in retail locations before purchasing them. Mandonnaud continued to expand the Sephora brand through the 1990s, opening its flagship store on the Champs-Élysées in 1997. In July 1997, Mandonnaud and his partners sold Sephora to LVMH, which expanded the stores globally and bolstered the chain's products to include beauty and cosmetic products.