There's big news in retail today, as heavy-hitter conglomerates Ulta Beauty and Target just revealed new information regarding their strategic partnership that's going to change the way millions of Americans shop for beauty products — and it's coming soon.
Starting in August, Ulta Beauty will debut at over 100 Target stores nationwide, with plans to quickly scale to over 800 locations in the coming years. The shop-in-shop model will include a bannered "Ulta Beauty at Target" subsection of approximately 1,000 square feet of retail space located beside Target's existing beauty aisles, expanding the product assortment with more than 50 new prestige brands, including Anastasia Beverly Hills, bareMinerals, Clinique, Drybar, IT Cosmetics, MAC, St. Tropez, Sunday Riley, Tarte, and The Ordinary.
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Brian Cornell, Target chairman and CEO, says that he sees this new venture and brand alliance as transformative for the growth and visibility of both retailers. "In partnership with Ulta Beauty — a company that shares our deep guest focus — we are able to expand our growing beauty business with new, exciting brands, an immersive experience, and loyalty benefits to transform how our guests shop for all their beauty needs," Cornell said in a press release.
As an operation existing within the walls of Target, the partnership team plans to infuse Ulta Beauty's established guest-centric expertise into the collaboration, training Target team members to serve as experts on the expanded prestige beauty offerings. Further, the online experience, also coming in August — via Target.com and the Target app — will reflect the look and feel of shopping Ulta Beauty online, with the goal of providing a new way for Target consumers to conveniently shop for their favorite beauty products while utilizing Target’s existing perks, like free shipping and curbside pickup.
Ulta Beauty CEO, Mary Dillon, echoes Cornell's sentiment of excitement in reinventing a novel shopping experience, which feels especially timely in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Dillon said: "More than ever before, now is the time for innovation in retail."