It’s… different.
So. I went beauty shopping. In a proper store. Just imagine. (Before that, I went to a Sephora store for the last time in late February.) But how exactly IS beauty shopping during covid?!
How it is here right now
In Germany, infection rates are quite low when I’m writing this in July, and while you’re required to wear masks in stores and on public transport, you can, for example, totally go out and have dinner in a restaurant (although not a lot of people seem to do that, and most people in my city seem more comfortable sitting outside). Inside events are mostly cancelled, and there’re still no sports events with spectators. As everywhere in the world, there seem to be people who adhere to distancing and mask wearing rules with good grace, and people who go along with a devil may care attitude.
Beauty shopping has been weird?!
But back to beauty shopping. Did you realise that online beauty shopping has been a little weird lately? Not only are there often delays in shipping (I’m totally fine with that, as long as my orders get to me) – some Korean and Japanese stores actually resumed shipping to Europe, so yay! – but also weird product shortages. Manufacturers actually seem to have problems producing and supplying stock, which is, when you think about it, not really surprising in a globalised world.
But for a beauty lover like myself, I started to miss browsing actual shelves and swatching products quite acutely after a few weeks of lockdown. Buying beauty products unseen and untested goes against my buying rules to minimise waste. So what’s a beauty lover to do?!
Now that shops are open again, especially beauty counters, drugstores and perfumeries battle against the spread of the virus. Testing is out – completely. Or is it? I wanted to see how it is for myself.
Let’s go and buy some makeup!
I wandered into a nearly empty Douglas on a Saturday morning. It’s the largest Douglas in Europe, and I counted five customers during the time I was in there (granted, it was very early). Staff was occupied with disinfecting counters and stocking shelves, and everyone wore a mask (shoutout to L’Oreal for issuing their Urban Decay counter staff snazzy masks with their logo).
On every counter were signs saying people weren’t allowed to test products on their own and to contact staff if they wanted to test a product. Curious, I chatted to the friendly SA at the Urban Decay counter. She handed me a fresh Kleenex to swatch the new UD Naked Ultraviolet palette, which worked astonishingly well. I dipped a clean part of the tissue into the pan and transferred the eye shadow to my wrist, where I’d usually swatch. She also admitted that while people generally adhered to the rules, she couldn’t supervise the open testers still on display at all times.
At the perfume counter, I sprayed a new Jo Malone fragrance on a paper blotter. The young SA immediately told me I was allowed to remove my mask to sniff it. I declined. (I smelled it outside, in the end.)
Skincare’s problems
Over at the skincare counters, signs told me to test products with Q-Tips supplied. ( I couldn’t find any, so I didn’t.) I then sauntered over to the Deciem corner, which was nearly completely devoid of products. (Deciem has a LOT of supply chain issues right now, judging from the slew of products sold out everywhere online – including my fave sunscreen.) Skincare saw some gains during the beginning of the pandemic, and a lot of companies can’t seem to be able to keep shelves stocked.
The empty promotion booth of Kylie Skincare sat empty in the middle of the floor – I was told there would be SAs in there later in the day to educate people on the products. Because testing anything on your face is out – everywhere. That’s actually the only rule everyone seemed to adhere to.
Sales, crowds, and hand sanitizer
Sephora had more shoppers and a huge hand sanitizer dispenser right at the entrance. (More about the issue of safety when shopping on CNN.) SAs actually provided you with little sealed applicators to swatch products on your hands/arm. The Frankfurt Sephora is rather new and built with ample space between the shelves. Maybe that’s why I actually enjoyed being in there more. I browsed and was mildly tempted by some heavily discounted products (everything is on sale right now to entice buyers), and nearly, very nearly forgot the pandemic.
In the department store next door people seemed to shop and browse just like in the before times. I had to laugh when I saw YSL’s lipstick display: fully stocked with dummy testers made entirely out of plastic.
I finally went into a drugstore: while signs still told me not to use testers (opening a product means you’ve to buy it), displays where nevertheless stocked with testers, and the group of teenage girls crowding in front didn’t seem adverse to sampling and testing to their hearts content.
How it is, right now
I came home empty handed. It’ll depend on your personality, and how serious you take the pandemic, but being in a store with people didn’t seem particularly relaxing to me. The SAs seemed to have to provide some creative gymnastics in selling products (and given it’s beauty, the way to do that is actually letting the customer test it) in somewhat safe conditions. Swatching – yes, applying on face – no. For me, the whole experience showed a rather depressing new normal: sure, you can go out and do all sort of things, beauty shopping being one of them. Will it be safe? It depends. Is it like before? Hell no.
