I usually love this Sephora location because it is close to my house and the staff are usually pretty helpful. The last two times I was in the store a fabulous, elder woman in her fifties was extremely helpful. She listened to what I wanted and took time to help me. However, I didn't receive the same quality of help this time.
As soon as I walked in I saw that the store was busy, so I knew I might be waiting before receiving help and I was ok with that. I had my 12 year old daughter with me along with her friend and my 4 year old, who was not being loud or getting into any product that was displayed, just FYI. Finally, a young man came over to help us. I explained that we were on a time limit and we just needed Nars tinted moisturizer or foundation. I told him that the moisturizer usually worked on my daughter, but we could try the foundation since she was going to a dance that night. She needed to be color matched since her skin has gotten darker due to the California sunshine. He insisted that we do away with Nars and try the Laura Mercier instead. I told him that I'm familiar with the product but we prefer Nars because it seems to work best with my daughter's skin. He pleaded again that I try the product and I told him that I didn't want to be pressured into buying something that I didn't want. He said, "Oh, your not... just try it!" Finally, I said, "I like the Laura tinted moisturizer but I'm wearing the foundation right now and I hate it! Can we just have the Nars?" He said, "Well, I work for Laura and this makeup is going to look better on your daughter anyway, since her skin is perfect." I repeated with, "No, we don't want to try it." I guess he was offended and replied with, "let me just get you someone else who can help you!"
After waiting five minutes a sweet girl came to help us. She let us try the Nars and it looked great on my daughter. My daughter asked that she help her with the bags under her eyes and she did. I did mention that we were on a time limit but I didn't want to be rude and just leave because I did appreciate the time she was taking with us. Finally, when it was time to pay, they would not accept my credit card because my husband's name was on it. I showed her my i.d. assuring her the name on the card was my husband. I have never had an issue using his card in there, or else I would have gone prepared with a different card. Finally, we ended up leaving empty handed...I was also frustrated because I could tell that the girl helping us was trying to be nice but, her tone wasn't genuine and it felt a little patronizing. Maybe she was nervous, but this ended up making me feel nervous and unwanted. This was the worst experience I have ever had at any Sephora. I'm not sure if it was because they were busy or if it was because I had kids with me this time? I think I'm going to check out Ulta. read more