Sephora 20% Off Sale For 2016 November 4th-7th for VIB Rouge and 11th-14th for VIB

See recent articles on Sephora Sale items.

My review of the In-Store Event and GWP Bag.

The official shopping dates for the 20% off sale at Sephora are out. This sale is for VIB and VIB Rouge tiers, but Rouge members can share the discount with anyone in-store on the first day of their sale. VIB Rouge members can shop online with 20% off using code 20ROUGE from November 4th-7th, and VIB members can shop online with 20% off using code 20VIB from November 11th-14th. Redemption cards for in-store purchases went out, but each store should have a card behind the register for those who do not receive one. If you are a Sephora shopper without a rewards account, you should really consider joining. There are a lot of codes and specials that are only available for Beauty Insiders. Sephora separated the tiers again for 2016 just as they did for VIB Rouge and VIB in 2015.

These are multi-use codes, so members can shop online or in person as often as they’d like during their part of the sale. This discount will also work in Sephora in JC Penney stores, but it will not work at JC Penney online.

The sale is only available for Rouge members from November 4th-7th (with one exception discussed below). Rouge members who shop in person will receive a holiday bag with classic Sephora stripes and gems. This bag is available while supplies last, so shop early if you want the bag. Members can share their discount with friends in-store (this will not work online from their friend’s account) on the first day of the sale, 11/04/16. Their friends should also receive a bag according to the terms, but there are always stores who refuse to honor this. Hopefully, your store gives your friend a bag, because I still remember the Sephora employee who denied my sister a bag at an August 2014 Rouge event. I gave her my bag, because I told her she’d get one after reading the fine print. If this bag (pictured below) is like the one offered at the last couple of events, it is very cheaply made.

Rouge members can visit the FAQ on Beautytalk. You can only access this thread while logged into a Rouge account. I suggest visiting this thread with unanswered questions after reading this.

Most employees will not automatically apply the discount, so present your discount card, email, or bring it up and ask the employee to scan the general one Sephora keeps at the register. Here is the back of my discount card. The bar code is general, so they should not collect it. If you have not received your enveloped card, you could still get one in the holiday catalog.

The sale is only available for VIB members from November 11th-14th. It says people who cross from VIB to Rouge during the sale will still be able to shop again, but that was not the case last year. Read below for more information on that. There is no option to share this discount with other members. VIB members can visit the FAQ on Beautytalk. You can only access this thread while logged into a VIB (or Rouge) account. I suggest visiting this thread with unanswered questions after reading this.

According to the FAQ for this year, Rouge members will get a special exception to shop the VIB sale for items that go out-of-stock during their part of the sale and return during the VIB part. Last year, some customer service agents at Sephora.com and Sephora employees in stores allowed Rouge members to shop the VIB part of the sale. Sephora promised on its Beautytalk forum that VIB Rouge members could shop items that were out-of-stock during the Rouge sale but restocked during the VIB sale. Many agents refused to honor that promise, because they never got the official word. That means only lucky Rouges could shop restocked items during the VIB part of the sale. There was an item I wanted, the Kevyn Aucoin Contour Palette (which I just picked up in the 2016 Employee Appreciation Sale), that went out-of-stock during the Rouge sale last year. Even though it came back in stock during the VIB sale, I did not want to hassle with asking someone to help me. I did try to use the VIB code online, but it did not work.

Why is this an issue? VIB Rouge members “get” all the benefits of VIB members. If we cannot shop the VIB sale, we are not getting all the benefits. Sephora argues that we got the same number of shopping days as VIB members and a shot to buy the items earlier, so we got the VIB benefits. Since VIB members were able to buy the Kevyn Aucoin Palette (and other items Rouges missed out on) that I was not able to buy, I sorely disagree with Sephora. This is obviously open to interpretation, and I acknowledge that Sephora is within its right to interpret its program how it wants.

People who started the VIB sale as a VIB but qualified for Rouge during the sale in 2015 were unable to shop the sale again without calling in for help. The FAQ assures they will still be able to shop the sale this year, but eludes to needing assistance to do so. This means the technical issues preventing them from doing so online have not been addressed since last year. I see this causing undue stress for Sephora employees and shoppers, so I cannot understand why they do not go back to the original format that allows Rouge members to shop the VIB sale. If this year fails again, I cannot imagine them not reverting back to the original system next year.

There is no private VIB Rouge event to kick off this sale for the second year in a row. Sephora has switched up the private events for 2016, so they have not coincided with any dates offered in previous years. We saw events in June and September for 2016, so it is certainly possible to see an event later this year that is not tied to a major promotion. The September event coincided with a point multiplier, which always took place in August in the past. I believe it got postponed this year to introduce the holiday items at the event and give time to work out the kinks for the newly launched Rewards Bazaar.

Sephora does not inform a single Beauty Insider of all deal details. Certain offers are targeted and others have different purchase minimums based on the code. Remember to check New Offers and/or Recycled Offers before placing an online order. If you’re spending over $25, you can add a promo code to any order. Product reviews do not always make it into the haul article, but you can always type the product into the search bar to see if I’ve mentioned it or reviewed it elsewhere. See all Sephora articles. Read Tips For Getting the Best Deal When Shopping Sephora. View my main page for the guide map to the site and deeper deal exploration.

Disclosure: Affiliate Links