Birthday Reward

[janinegreg]

Hello 

I’m sorry to bother you again this time of year. It is my birthday. We went to Sephora in Sarasota Florida UTC mall yesterday and again like last year they have no birthday rewards. I cannot keep returning to check at the store as it is a 45 minute ride. 

Last year my birthday gift had to be shipped and I am asking you to please do this again. 

Thank you.

Janine

[DaneeBT]

Hi @janinegreg 

As @SportyGirly125 suggested, we suggest contacting the Sephora store via phone before your birthday month ends to see if the gift has been restocked! Alternatively, the gift can be redeemed online with a merchandise order of $25 or more.

[SportyGirly125]

@janinegreg Sephora employee here.

I would call the store and see if they get any in before going.  We ran out but got a shipment in and was able to give them out.  You can also get the 250 points or order the bday gift online with a minimum $25 purchase.

[janinegreg]

Yes I know about the points redemption. I had to do that 3 yrs ago. Last year they mailed the product to me. The store goes out of stock as quickly as it is replenished. I make the long trip and they only have one item to choose from or none at all. It is a poor system for such a large, reputable company. 

[janinegreg]

This is the letter I wrote and still waiting for a response:

I have also copied its 

RE:  Continued Issues with Birthday Gift Program


The birthday gift program has been both a difficult and challenging process for me every year. This year was no different from the last few.

My birthday falls in November which is a busy time for your business. Every November we come into the store to place an order and pickup the birthday gift. Last year, there were none in the store so I accepted the 250 points. The year before, again no gift, but with a call to customer service they graciously mailed it to me.

This year I specifically wanted to give the birthday gift to an 11-year old whom I used to babysit. She is of the age to use makeup and told me she loves Sephora. The gift I wanted to give her was the “Youth to the People” birthday gift.

We went into the store in November and there was no stock. I was told to buy $25 worth of items and order it online. I had $150 in my online cart so it was not a problem. I added the “Youth” gift to the basket, and it went out of stock.

From there, I called customer service and was transferred to a manager, Leslie, who while gracious told me there was no more shipping of birthday gifts. It was this item I was specifically interested in because it was something a young girl could use. She also informed me that if I went past my month, the gift would not be honored and she said, “I had to forfeit” the program this year if I did not want the points. This policy had been put in place just two weeks ago and she was not empowered to make any exceptions.

So I asked Leslie to look at the inventory for the item in my store and see if they had restocked the item. She said there was stock but she could not guarantee it. I asked her to call the store and put one away for me. If they did not have the item, I asked them to call methinking I could reach out to another store she saw that also had the “Youth” stock.

No one ever called me, so I assumed they had it. I sent my husband down to the store last night, and he picked up a birthday gift only to find that when I got home, it was Gucci perfume.

I called the store, left a voice mail for the manager and no one called me back. I called this morning and got a lovely manager, Sharon who told me there were no “Youth” birthday gifts available. They just substituted the Gucci even though this was not what I had expected. Again, if I had known the item was out of stock at my store, I would have saved my husband a 40-minute trip and sought it through another store. 

So I am stuck with the Gucci birthday perfume something I am not interested in. Given no alternative from your managers at Sephora online or in the stores, I find the birthday deal to be a tremendous disappointment.

If you can mail me the “Youth to the People” birthday gift and make an exception to your new policy, I would appreciate this.

Janine Gregor
Parrish, Florida, 34219

Thank you.

[keelybt]

@janinegreg I'm sorry to hear about this experience. We no longer have the Youth to the People birthday gift available online either. I understand that this is disappointing and will share your feedback with the appropriate department for future improvements.