AP
Andelena Pinkerton
Nov 24, 2025
This morning, while on a business trip, I left my hotel and walked over to the nearby Sephora. I was genuinely excited to see one so close by, especially since I shop at various Sephora locations several times a year. Walking into a nearly empty store with at least eight employees, I initially felt like I had hit the jackpot.
That feeling quickly changed when I asked for help.
I’ve worn the same makeup line, ILIA, for many years and was excited to try the many new products they recently released. I simply wanted assistance from choosing the correct shades and guidance on how to properly apply them. The First Gentleman Ricky I spoke with was very kind and found someone to help me. That associate assisted me briefly before passing me off to another employee Lei.
Unfortunately, this employee Lei made the experience very uncomfortable. While I was explaining that I wanted help and information — not a makeover — she repeatedly told me she was not giving me a free makeover, something I never asked for. Despite clarifying this multiple times, she continued to repeat the same statement. Eventually, after helping me with only a couple of items, insisting do each half of my face different she walked away, leaving my makeup mixed up and with no clarity on which shades I preferred. The overall interaction felt dismissive and frustrating. Lei maybe you need to be retrained!
Typically, I spend between $500–$800 per visit at Sephora. This time, due to the poor service, I spent just over $100 and ended up purchasing only items I already use instead of the new ILIA products I was excited about.
That said, I do want to give credit where it’s due. Several other employees were extremely kind and helpful, assisting me with skincare products from other lines, which I appreciated. Their professionalism stood in stark contrast to the negative experience I had with the one associate. A big thank you to Ricky, Racheal and Sumo.
I truly hope this feedback helps improve consistency in customer service, as Sephora is usually a place I look forward to shopping.
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AR
Ayana Rashay
Oct 27, 2025
I picked up a Doordash earlier today from this location & was given an EXTREMELY hard time from one of the supposed " managers " . She was claiming that I needed to either show her a barcode for them to scan on their end , or my ID , in order for them to confirm the pick - up .. which simply was not true . I always pick up from the Ala Moana location , & this has never been the process , so I was a little confused . Usually for these kinds of orders , I let them know I'm picking up for Doordash , give them the customer's name , & they hand me the order . Doordash then prompts US ( the delivery drivers ) to scan a barcode , which is usually stapled to the order bag . But , there is no barcode that pops up for THEM to scan on OUR phone . I showed her the app which showed the customer's name , address , phone number , the order number , etc .. Yet , she was still adamant about needing to see a barcode , claiming that Sephora is very , very , very strict when it comes to DoorDash because its a 3rd party service , etc etc etc .. She was wanting me to call into Doordash so that she could enforce this point to them , also . It was like talking to a wall . At one point she did go to get a 2nd opinion from another manager who allegedly confirmed this . I requested to speak with this other manager multiple times & she refused saying that " She's just going to say the same thing " . I was in there for over 30mins - as I called Doordash support . I told her that if I cancelled the order , it would negatively affect my rating ( but moreso , this was a high paying order , so I wanted the money :) . After asking about 4-5x , she finally allowed me to speak with the other manager who confirmed to her that she was wrong . Apparently , she had misunderstood the protocol for this ? My thing is , if you didnt know what you were talking about , or what the protocol was , what was the motive behind BLATANTLY LYING , over & over again as if you did ? .. condescendingly claiming that Sephora is ohh - so strict . The energy that I got from this interaction was that I was being profiled &/or treated like I was doing something fraudulent , as if I was going to steal this order . I could literally open my own Sephora store at this point , if I wanted to . Being treated like this is disgusting . Everyone is going through their own shit . Life is hard as it is . Noone has time to be dealing with weird or poor treatment from literal strangers when youre just out & about trying to shop , or do your job , or earn a little extra money . Idk what her motive was behind giving me such a hard time , but it was annoying & completely unnecessary .. It's about to be 2026 . Catch up , or go sit down somewhere . The interaction was stressful , & it took time , energy , & MONEY out of my pocket ( as 1 customer did cancel their order due to the extra time I spent in there ) . Yet , I was still kind & patient with her .