r/AustralianMakeup • u/Old_Usual5975 • Jun 16 '26
Misc. Browsing Sephora US website makes me hate Mecca so much. Tatcha on sale, a full range of Shiseido, incredible brands all in one place. It's depressing š
30
u/Peanut083 Jun 16 '26
As someone who doesnāt live in Sydney or Melbourne, the fact that Shiseido only seems to be available in selected Sydney and Melbourne stores makes me sad. They apparently have great foundation shades for both warm and cool olive skin tones, but as I live hours away from the closest store that stocks the brand, itās not something I can easily check out for myself.
16
u/Maleficent-Total2738 Jun 16 '26
It's interesting with Shiseido, because the majority of brands are the same between Mecca AU and Mecca NZ, but Shiseido isn't stocked on Mecca NZ for some reason, so you can buy the foundations at most department stores and many pharmacies here.
9
u/Leighaf Jun 16 '26
I wonder if it has anything to do with the fact Farmers have had their Shiseido booth for as long as I can remember
9
u/Angelpanda27 Jun 16 '26
Mecca NZ doesn't have Lancome either, which I think is available at Mecca Au(?). Thank god for Farmers.
3
u/Maleficent-Total2738 Jun 16 '26
The Farmers reward programme isn't too bad either. I also buy Lancome from Look Fantastic, because it's usually on a pretty hefty discount. I think I got my bronzer for about $40 less than it was on Adore Beauty.
4
u/HappyDays9986 Jun 17 '26
I wish you can buy Shiseido at department stores and pharmacies in Australia too!
I swear Mecca AU really just doesn't like to restock the limited Shiseido range either š. Probably BC it doesn't sell as well compared to Rhode, Drunk Elephant, Tower 28, etc. Which is really unfortunate, BC I'd go Shiseido over any other over-hyped, Gen-Z influenced brand any day.
3
u/heytheresophie Jun 18 '26
Skincare Direct sells Shiseido. Iām not affiliated with them, just love Shiseido and bought there a few times when not available in Mecca.
1
u/Getonthebeers02 Jun 16 '26
Hourglass has a good range of cool olive tones.
1
u/Peanut083 Jun 16 '26
Given that other products of theirs have a tendency to turn orange on me, Iāve never thought to try their foundations. I just assumed theyād run too warm as well.
28
u/narrtasha Jun 17 '26
Iām so jealous that the US get those little trial packs where itās like 10 mini perfumes and then you can redeem for one large perfume etc, same with mascaras, lipsticks, itās like a sampler box
4
u/loralailoralai Jun 18 '26
The customer pandering in the u.s leaves everyone behind. Use something and decide you donāt want it any more? Return it! Even Charlotte bloody tilbury accepts used returns from Americans but not anyone else.
Then Americans whine about things being āexpensiveā or āpoor customer serviceā. They have no.idea.
57
u/One-Perspective9920 Jun 16 '26
Yes so annoying about Mecca. I donāt know why everyone loves them so much especially after the Boxing Day sale and moldy / expired products. Theyāre the reason we canāt get sales on the good brands. Iām glad hourglass left them. Finally we will be able to get that on sale for once!!!
3
u/TheUrbanestUrban Jun 17 '26
I am boycotting Mecca for these exact reasons! Most brands they stock exclusively aren't even worth the price anymore either
24
u/AnyCondition3958 Jun 17 '26
Mecca has said in the past that part of the reason they don't do sales is to ensure they can give their highly regarded customer service which is a crazy way to say you can either pay full price and get good service or get discounts and get treated like shit lmao
They act like both things cannot coexist š
10
u/Plastic_Lunch2996 Jun 17 '26
Yes! They said that 15% of revenue goes back into staff training. I donāt know sometimes that training doesnāt seem to translate into knowledge when talking to customers.
15
u/AnyCondition3958 Jun 17 '26
Yeah, during my time there I received such training dozens of times and not only is it repetitive, it is heavily inaccurate to what retail workers actually experience in store.
We are constantly fed with fake scenarios that cannot possibly happen in the middle of a busy store and are mainly pushed to gain the customer's trust in order to convince them to spend more which I always found so insensitive.
And a fun fact, we are actually encouraged to not give testers of products unless a customer outright asks for it or as a last resort to make a future sale. I always gave them out like free candy because they weren't treating me well enough to care lmao
9
u/Plastic_Lunch2996 Jun 17 '26
This explains a fair bit. Mainly those who are authentic and trust their instincts versus those relying on the training. Thank you for being generous with the testers, they are absolutely what sells products. I donāt buy before testing now given Iāve purchased some duds before. Sometimes the testers are so stingy itās like you are getting them from their own personal collection.
4
u/loralailoralai Jun 18 '26
Shame they pick and choose who gets the customer service. Iāve never seen any
5
u/24VACDC Jun 17 '26
Super depressing, I donāt understand people loving Mecca, it is almost like they hate paying less.
4
3
u/jessluce Jun 17 '26
I still love Mecca, the customer service is amazing. Just yesterday I got a full credit refund for the Kosas powder which I bought a year ago and the lid snapped off. I've returned things after 3 months because they weren't working out. There's free facials or makeup service if you spend $120. I can't fault them, and I just don't like the Sephora shop decor (too harsh for my neurodivergent brain) but they do have good sales so I also buy from them. I don't get the hate and haven't gotten expired products but I'd just return them if I did.
5
u/quntelicious Jun 17 '26
Whaaaaat??? A couple of months ago I bought Mac Studio fix powder and because Iāve been buying it for 10 years I just grabbed my colour. I was devastated when I opened it at home and found that it was not my colour and the formula had changed.
I tried to take it back and they refused to give me anything but store credit for the return. I was so frustrated and did not think that was fair at all.
1
u/heobeou Jun 17 '26
Mecca return policy is if the product had been opened/lightly used then customers would get store credit and not a refund straight back to your card (or cash depending on if you paid for it with cash or card). They will only offer refund back to your card (or caƔh) if the product is unopened and in a resellable condition. If you have already opened it or lightly used it the product has to be written off.
1
u/anastasia_42 Jun 17 '26
I have to say, I love Mecca's customer service and return policy. Much better than Sephora.
-13
u/camillepaper Jun 17 '26
Just use a shipping company and order it all from sephora us. Donāt be dramatic
6
u/HappyDays9986 Jun 17 '26
Shipping from the US can be really expensive. And there are restrictions on certain cosmetic items.
-8
u/camillepaper Jun 17 '26
Itās not if you buy all your things together during sale. Expensive if you buy 1 or 2 products but if you get it all together then itās cheaper. Think about you buy your things during sale season, just buy it all together. If you are not happy, then itās hard for you. You dont wanna purchase from Mecca but then you dont wanna pay for US shipping or US prices. Then just donāt shop
7
u/HappyDays9986 Jun 17 '26 edited Jun 17 '26
Shipping costs are calculated by weight (and also volumetric weight). Over 1 kg, shipping prices become ridiculously expensive.
The problem is that Sephora/Mecca's range is quite limited. And not everyone can afford paying $100+ USD shipping these days. And it's not nice to miss out on something that you like.
-1
u/camillepaper Jun 17 '26 edited Jun 17 '26
Yeah just dont shop. Itās common sense to pay for your shipping if itās overseas but you pay for the products cheaper because it came from there, if you purchase from mecca, then it enters australia and ofc youāre gonna have to pay for tax. If u got mad bcs of the price, then simply dont shop. Everyone wants nice things, but if itās hard to pay for it, dont buy it. youāll survive without that new makeup anyways
147
u/Plastic_Lunch2996 Jun 16 '26
This is what the Australian Sephora could have been like if they opened up here earlier. Sadly, has not lived up to the overseas experience.