Sephora is exiting Korea, according to the retailer’s website for the region. The beauty retailer will begin phasing out its online, mobile app and store operations starting May 6, which will also be the last day customers can place an online order, per a translation of an FAQ about the closure.
Loyalty members will lose any unused points and have their information deleted at that time as well. Sephora’s customer service team in Korea will continue operating until mid-August for returns and refunds. The Sephora Korea site lists five stores in the country. An about page on Sephora’s Singapore website boasts “an expanding base of over 200 stores” in the Asia Pacific region, which also includes China, Australia, Thailand and other countries.
A Sephora spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment on Sephora’s exit from the market.
The news comes as Sephora’s U.S. rival Ulta recently announced an expansion into Mexico, planned for 2025. Competition between the two has heated up over the past few years as both retailers pursue large-scale shop-in-shop partnerships — Sephora with department store Kohl’s and Ulta with mass merchant Target.
Sephora has recently shaken up leadership in some of its geographical regions, naming the next CEO of its North America region in September. Sephora’s head of Greater China also reportedly left the company in January, though the retailer would not confirm the move. Sephora CEO Guillaume Motte himself is a relative newcomer, taking over the top post in January last year.
