New York — New York (AFP) – Walmart Customers may find something new next time they’re looking for makeup and skincare products: in-store consultants offer personalized tips and recommendations.
The mega-retail chain is beginning to move away from the no-frills service model by staffing its beauty aisles with trained specialists who can suggest foundation shades to match a shopper’s skin tone or know what moisturizer. Trending on TikTok.
Those roles have been filled at 22 stores in Arkansas and Texas in recent months, and Walmart expects to have them available at more than 400 of its 4,600 U.S. namesake stores by the end of the year.
The addition of “beauty experts” comes in the shadow of rival Walmart and Target stores, specialty chains like Sephora and department stores. Everyone is competing To capture a greater slice of the $129 billion U.S. beauty and personal care market, including by offering personalized advice and fun interactive spaces to encourage consumers to shop in person as well as online.
A year ago, Walmart created areas in 40 stores where customers could try on cosmetics and talk with beauty consultants. The experimental “beauty bar” concept is now in hundreds of stores, according to Venima Shekhar, vice president of beauty marketing for Walmart’s U.S. division. As part of plans to remodel 650 locations by the end of the year, the company is moving beauty departments to the front of stores and installing displays Products get attention On social media.
“We’re not trying to be Ulta or Sephora,” Shekhar told The Associated Press. “We have a wide selection that no one else has. We have amenities that no one else has. What we also want to do next is layer in the service level for both our associates and our customers: ‘Here’s what’s trending.’ Here’s what’s new.
Department stores And beauty product chains always employ people to help customers test and purchase cosmetics. Pharmacy chains CVS and Walgreens Beauty experts have added to many of their sites in the past decade. Walmart’s decision to join them highlights how retailers with brick-and-mortar stores rely on the human touch to differentiate themselves from online shopping platforms and AI-powered chatbots.
Walmart added More premium brands to its beauty lineup in the past year, including French drugstore skincare brand La Roche Posay, Australian natural makeup brand Nude by Nature, and hair tools FHI Heat. It is not cheap. Some La Roche Posay sunscreens cost just under $40 for 1.7 ounces.
The beauty refresh is part of Walmart’s broader initiative to upgrade its merchandise and ambiance as it attracts higher-income shoppers. Shekhar said customers who buy high-end products and not just everyday skin and hair care essentials are looking for inspiration when they shop.
Target announced in early March that it plans to expand its assortment of high-end beauty products and hire employees Enhance product experience This fall in 600 stores. In those stores, a new department called Target Beauty Studio will partially replace existing in-store Ulta stores. As part of the targeted partnership Expires in AugustUlta had beauty consultants in Target stores.
Experts who provide enhanced customer service may become an asset in other departments of mass market retail stores. Walmart is considering adding experts in electronics, for example, according to Whitney Hunt, vice president of Walmart’s U.S. operations.
Target began rolling out a “baby store” experience last month in nearly 200 stores where concierges help shoppers find product registries created by expectant parents.
while artificial intelligence It threatens to eliminate jobs across all industries Online job postings for estheticians and beauty consultants have remained fairly stable between February 2020 and this month, according to Corey Stahl, an economist at the research arm of the job site Indeed. Indeed said online postings for marketing and software development jobs fell by more than 20% in the same period.
The average pay for makeup artist roles was $19.54 per hour in March, nearly $2 more than the hourly wage for everyone else. Other retail jobsAccording to Indeed data. Walmart said its cosmetologists can earn between $14 and $35 per hour, depending on the store’s location. This is similar to the hourly range of $14 to $37 for all hourly workers at Walmart, the company said.
Walmart Beauty Consultants undergo one day of training at the company’s academy and receive ongoing instruction on products, seasonal trends, and working with customers. They do not apply products to shoppers or beauticians, unlike some staff at department stores and specialist beauty chains.
Walmart provides online tools to help advisors understand what sales goals they should achieve, which are the best-selling goals for the beauty department. Trademarks And how their store compares to the business generated at other Walmart locations, Hunt said.
Helena Bacon, 21, a third-year student at the University of Arkansas studying biology, said the training she received last fall made her feel more able to help clients. Before that, she helped in the area covering pharmacy and health and personal care supplies like basic shampoo and toothpaste for a store in Fayetteville, and occasionally helped customers find items in the beauty area.
Bacon said she understands now Product componentsknow how to identify the lipstick shades that attract different customers and top TikTok trends.
“I’ve been everywhere before,” she said. “But now that I’m in my department, if someone comes to me and asks for a recommendation on something, I can go with them to that department and say, ‘Here’s what I know is good for the problem you’re trying to fix.’”