MULO Brands With Soul: February Pick
This year, some MULO (multi-location) brands declared that they were disbanding their DEIB (diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging) initiatives.
As we all know, having a team dedicated to DEIB is not nearly as important as “walking the talk” if you declare yourself an inclusive brand.
Read here about why having a DEIB policy today may still be important for MULO brands — retailers, restaurants, and service businesses (as well as the agencies that serve them).
Sephora is one of the beauty brands that seems to continue to lean into diversity. They (like many other retailers) have gotten into the content business. They produced a documentary called “Beauty & Belonging.” It featured many of Sephora’s brands and team members and was filmed across eight countries. It was even shown at the Sundance Film Festival!
The MULO brand still has a page on its website outlining its commitment to diversity. The copy reads, “We champion all beauty fearlessly and build inclusive environments for employees, consumers, and communities.”
The company has even commissioned its own study on racial bias in the retail world.
In 2023, Sephora was named a Great Place to Work. They are transparent in their reporting, even featuring a demographic breakdown of their workforce on their website, which many major brands don’t do.
Sephora is undergoing a physical brand transformation as well, remodeling its entire store fleet, incorporating new lighting systems, displays, and technology throughout. Sephora also has stores within Kohl’s, which has not eliminated its DEIB policies as of this writing.
A brief review of Sephora’s Glassdoor ratings revealed the usual complaints about long hours and too much work, but no obvious discrimination was mentioned. (Again, a company can have a policy and mission statement, but the rubber ultimately meets the road during day-to-day interactions. As they say, you can’t “perfume the pig.”
And it looks like Sephora may, indeed, be a swan rather than an ugly duckling (as long as we’re leaning into animal metaphors).
