Dollar General, CVS, Sephora and More Face Off With Beauty Sales Events
Sephora, Ulta Beauty, CVS Health and Dollar General are again hosting competing beauty sales events in the lead-up to spring.
CVS’ ‘Epic Beauty Event’
CVS first introduced its bi-annual “Epic Beauty Event” in 2019 in an attempt to gain ground in the beauty category, competing with concurrent major sales events at category leaders Ulta and Sephora.
Since then, the drugstore chain has continued the effort, this year again throwing its weight behind the occasion online and in-stores. CVS has also partnered with influencers and beauty enthusiasts on social media platforms to promote the program.
CVS is offering discounts, such as "buy one, get one free" deals and ExtraBucks rewards, on a wide range of beauty products through April 12.
Ulta’s ‘Spring Haul Sale’
Ulta Beauty is hosting its annual “Spring Haul Sale” with discounts up to 40% on various beauty products, including brands such as La Roche-Posay, Touchland and ColourPop.
The sale this year runs March 28 through April 5. The event is strategically positioned between Ulta's other major sales, including the "21 Days of Beauty" held in March and September, and the “Holiday Beauty Blitz.”
Promotional efforts include email and SMS campaigns, targeted communications to rewards members, in-store signage and displays, social media promotions and collaborations with beauty influencers to showcase products and create authentic content.
Sephora’s Spring Sale
Sephora's annual “Spring Sale” offers discounts for Beauty Insider loyalty members with a special code and up to 30% off select products, making it the retailer’s biggest sale of the year. The event runs April 4–14.
Discounts span popular makeup brands such as Fenty Beauty, Rare Beauty and Bobbi Brown.
Each Beauty Insider tier gets access to the deals on different dates.
- Rouge: April 4-14
- VIB: April 8-14
- Insider: April 8-14
Sephora’s promotional efforts mostly mirror Ulta’s.
Dollar General’s ‘7 Days of Savings Beauty’
Dollar General is enhancing its commitment to beauty with a “7 Days of Savings Beauty” event, running April 6-12, while also promoting new exclusive product launches and recent national brand additions to its stores.
The discount chain will offer daily discounts on beauty and personal care products, propping up specific brands and categories each day, including:
- L’Oreal Event on April 6, offering savings across cosmetics, hair and skin (includes Maybelline, Thayer’s and Soft Sheen Carson).
- Zuru Edge’s Monday Haircare savings on April 7.
- Edgewell or Skintimate shave gel savings on April 9.
- Old Spice or Secret deodorant BOGO deals on April 11.
The discount chain first introduced a "Days of Beauty" event in July 2023 with a weeklong celebration featuring daily tutorials with beauty influencers, such as “Makeup Monday” and “Tutorial Tuesday.”
To enhance its range of on-trend, affordable products, DG recently rolled out (or will soon roll out) several national brand lines and exclusive products, including:
- E.l.f. Cosmetics, which debuted at DG last fall. Its holy grail collection will be available this spring in more than 10,000 stores.
- Monday Haircare, which is now available in approximately 17,000 stores, with more than 10 items priced $5 to $7, including collagen, hyaluronic acid, wheat protein or keratin-infused haircare.
- Root to End, an exclusive cruelty-free and vegan DG brand, which recently launched six new hair care products.
- A new body wash from Degree, developed exclusively for DG by Unilever. The SKU will be available this year in four scents for $5.
Other Events
Walmart, Target and Amazon also just wrapped major sales events that incorporated beauty deals as not to miss out on the season.
