Beauty giant Sephora to open stores in Israel this month, with limited product range

Three stores to open on August 20 in Tel Aviv, Ramat Gan, and Jerusalem, with owner said to view move as a pilot and will seek to expand operations over next two years

French beauty giant Sephora is set to open several stores in Israel in the coming days, though its product selection will be far more limited than that found at stores around the world, at least for now, its Israeli franchiser announced on Sunday.

The stores will be operated by Israeli franchisee Glam42, a local cosmetics chain. On August 20, Glam42 will simultaneously open three stores and five “corners” (boutiques located inside other shops). Stores will open at Tel Aviv’s Azrieli Center, the Ayalon Mall in Ramat Gan and the Malha Mall in Jerusalem. Three additional stores are set to open soon.

At this stage, Sephora stores in Israel will primarily sell the in-house brand Sephora Collection, and will not feature many of the third-party brands that make up the majority of sales at Sephora stores globally.

According to the Ynet news site, brands that won’t be available include Huda Beauty, Charlotte Tilbury, Rare Beauty and Fenty Beauty.

Brands by Sephora owner LVMH will likely be available, such as Benefit, Fresh and KVD Beauty. Fugazzi, K Beauty and BORN TO STAND OUT brands will also be on sale.

LVMH views the current store launch as a pilot and will consider bringing other beauty brands to the Israeli shops if it is deemed a success over the next two years, Ynet reported.

Sephora stores offer a range of makeup and skincare products, as well as fragrances.