Sephora: People share experience of sleeping in Meadowhall overnight to be first ones in new beauty store
Hundreds of people queued overnight to be the first ones inside Meadowhall’s newest store yesterday morning.
Sephora, an international beauty retailer, opened its first store in Yorkshire yesterday (July 11) at Meadowhall shopping centre.
Yet people were arriving en masse long before the official ribbon cutting at 9am, as people turned up to camp outside from around 3pm the previous day.
Overnight, it’s understood that more than 500 people showed up, excitedly building a community as they waited for the beloved store to open.
The first 500 were also lucky enough to nab themselves a gift bag full of beauty products valued to be at least £500.
One person towards the front of the queue told the store they had arrived at 7pm on Thursday, after completing a 12-hour shift at work.
When asked about sleeping at the shopping centre, they said: “It was cold, but it wasn’t quiet.
“There was some chitter-chatter and there was some music playing from somewhere, but we didn’t know where it was coming from.
“But it was a nice atmosphere, everyone was just getting along and it was actually really nice.”
A DJ played music on outside the store ahead of the grand opening, while people joined in the fun.
Some, who were celebrating their birthday, got given a unique sash as hundreds sang them ‘Happy Birthday’.
Drinks and snacks from Greggs were also handed out to those who’d waited so patiently for so long.
Unfortunately though, not everyone made it in time for the coveted gift bag.
One woman, who’d arrived at 2am with her daughter and daughter’s friend, told The Star: “We came from Nottingham and we are number 531, so we just missed out on the free goody bag.
“It was quite nice to be honest, we were just round the corner and it has been nice, it’s been good. I’m really excited, we’ve got our shopping lists and are ready to go in.”
And while an incredible amount of people showed up, centre director of Meadowhall, Darren Pearce, said they had been preparing for more than a thousand.
He added that the new store is a benefit to all of South Yorkshire, saying: “It puts not just Meadowhall, but Sheffield and the region on the map.
“We work with lots of partners across the city to make sure we amplify all the great things that Sheffield has to offer - this is one of the draws for the city for me, and it’s a big iconic brand.
“Sephora has a big halo effect in terms of bringing people from further afield and that’s exactly what it will do for the whole city.”
Managing director of Sephora UK, Sarah Boyd, added: “We are so excited to be in Meadowhall.
“We’ve had so many people coming and queueing overnight to get into the first store in Yorkshire. We’ve known since we arrived two-and-a-half years ago that we were desperate to come to this area, and we’ve just been looking for the perfect location at the perfect time.
“The response from consumers has been amazing, there’s a great vibe here - everyone has been really friendly, meeting each other overnight, getting to know the people in the queue next to them, and we’re just having a fantastic time.”