Preteen girls have allegedly been causing disruptions and exhibiting disrespectful behavior in beauty retail stores like Sephora and Ulta, with employees attributing the issue to social media trends and influencer culture, while some have been calling for age restrictions.
Sequoia Cothran, a Sephora employee from Tennessee, told Fox News: “It’s not the fact that they’re little girls in Sephora because makeup is subjective, there’s no age limit to it.
“It’s more about what these girls are reaching for when they’re in these stores.”
Preteen girls have allegedly been causing disruptions and exhibiting disrespectful behavior in beauty retail stores like Sephora and Ulta
Image credits: freepik
The 21-year-old makeup expert further explained: “It’s also the way that they’re treating the workers within it. You see these kinds of mean girl antics from these 10-year-olds.”
In the past couple of weeks, TikTok has been flooded with viral posts from beauty retail store shoppers and staff discussing their own brutal experiences with being “bullied” by pre-teen girls from ages 9-12, dubbed “Sephora kids,” while shopping for beauty products.
Sequoia said: “You see this aggressive demeanor towards older people. This level of disrespect that you’ve never seen from a child to a woman. Like they just simply do not care.”
“They’re all following a trend. I think that’s where we’re seeing this fascination come from,” Sephora employee Sequoia Cothran said
Image credits: Deva Darshan/Unsplash
The stunned employee reportedly witnessed “Sephora kids” push other customers out of the way to reach a product first, open and contaminate sealed products without buying them, and then abruptly interrupt while she was helping other customers, as per Fox News.
According to Sequoia, the issue stems from social media’s influence, which is the reason girls are flocking to Sephora and all seeking out the same products.
“They’re all following a trend,” she said. “I think that’s where we’re seeing this fascination come from,” Fox News reported.
The hashtag #ultakids is amassing 3.7 million views on TikTok, and #sephorakids is also trending on the video-sharing platform, gathering 204.2 million views
Image credits: andymndoza
With the hashtag #ultakids amassing 3.7 million views on TikTok, and #sephorakids also trending on the video-sharing platform, gathering 204.2 million views, other employees have come out with their own stories of being terrorized by little shoppers.
Olivia Vaphiades took to her TikTok page to post a video, which has been viewed 2.6 million times, recounting her time working at Sephora.
She explained that a little girl eagerly demanded products from the popular and viral brand Drunk Elephant.
Image credits: hankyute
A Sephora customer counted the number of preteen girls at a store, noting one of them was getting her eyebrows done
@michelasheedy This is embarrassing. Go get a lip smackers 😳💀 #sephorakids #sephora #makeup #drunkelephant #kids ♬ Funny – Gold-Tiger
After vulgarly exclaiming “Are you f*cking me?” upon Olivia trying to explain that the specific product she was looking for was sold out, the seemingly 10-year-old girl went on to demand the retinol serum from the same brand.
Retinol, a powerful ingredient added to beauty products aimed at slowing down skin aging, isn’t recommended for use by those aged below 20, which is what Olivia was trying to convey to her impatient and obviously underage customer.
“I’m not a parent, I just work at Sephora,” Olivia reminded her viewers.
All this came to a surprising twist when Olivia’s young customer’s mother showed up, asking if the product was safe for her daughter. According to Olivia, the prepubescent girl lied and affirmed that Olivia had recommended the product to her.
Following some attempts at clarifying what had really happened, Olivia went on to explain in her TikTok that the mother bought the retinol serum for her daughter against her advice.
“I had so much beef with a 10-year-old at Sephora today,” Kat exhaustingly said on TikTok
Image credits: nemu.jo
One former employee shared that a seemingly 10-year-old girl wanted to buy retinol serum, a product aimed at slowing down skin aging
@olivia.vaphiades There is never a dull moment when working at Sephora #sephora #drunkelephant #retinol #drunkelephantskincare #drunkelephantretinol #10 #sephorakids #fyp #mua #beautyadvisor #trending ♬ original sound – Olivia Vaphiades
Meanwhile, a woman named Kat shared her encounter with a rude Sephora customer in a video that has been viewed 6.7 million times on TikTok.
“I had so much beef with a 10-year-old at Sephora today,” Kat exhaustingly started her video.
She went on to reveal that a young girl cut a long line at the beauty store after asking to pass in front of Kat, which she refused.
“There’s a b*tch *ss long line back here,” Kat exclaimed.
Kat recalled being repeatedly disturbed by the rude little girl who was hitting her with her bag and making snarky comments.
“I tried not to punch this 10-year-old,” Kat quipped.
Bored Panda has contacted Ulta Beauty and Sephora for comment.
Sequoia witnessed “Sephora kids” open and contaminate sealed products without buying them
Image credits: peytonxblack
Generation Z has reportedly been experiencing premature aging due to the potential overuse of skincare and poor lifestyle choices.
Dr. Rasha Rakhshani-Moghadam told the Daily Mail: “Overuse or unnecessary application of filler and toxins at a young age may affect the natural facial development, causing younger patients to look older than they are.”
She further explained: “Millennials generally have a heightened awareness of skincare and diet compared to previous generations, often incorporating a more holistic approach to well-being.
“This shift involves a greater emphasis on preventive skincare practices and a focus on balanced diets.”
Many readers and TikTok users shared similar experiences
Parents who let their children on the internet - have snapchat, tiktok, insta, youtube kids, youtube, all the social media THIS is what happens. The ads are targeting children with make-up, facial care, hair care, clothing, water bottles, EVERYTHING. Children thinking they need wrinkle creams? Scrubs? Lathering on creams, foundation, etc and destroying their skin and bodies because they are TOO YOUNG and TOO NAIVE, and their parents are too busy with FOMO of their own. It is appalling to see 10 year olds flexing their face creams in class, flexing that they use a body scrub DAILY. This is 100% a parenting issue - watch what your kids are doing on the internet, guide them, assure them that at 10 they are PERFECT. Social media is NOT a safe place for teens - yep, all teens. The misinformation is outrageous. "influencers" are hawking products to get MONEY, not to help people. It is a giant carny show on the internet. Parents need to STEP IT UP.
I'm a teenager, i grew up in this weird internet time. I totally agree with what you are saying. I was talking with a friend, and she showed me what her 9 year old sister wanted for Christmas. the child was asking for hundred dollar face serums, perfumes, and some makeup items. When i was 9 i wanted books and lego. I feel like being online damages so many of these young children. Parents should guide their children to do the right thing. Being online is seriously damaging for kids mental health as well. There are so many bullies. Also, when something is meant for teenagers, and i see a bunch of children on it, it kind of ruins the experience. Going on a social media, and realizing half the people there are under the age of 13, it's not fun. I don't even use SM that often, only when i have to. So many corporation/schools are using SM as means of communication, and i hate this fact. I have to use facebook to make sure i don't miss homework from my school. teachers don't email, they just post on facebook.
Load More Replies...I was reading a response to this, where millennial women were saying that all the tween girl spaces have been removed. And it's true, there's "little kids" and then instant adultifying of specifically girls, with all the "self care" and make up tutorials and beauty products. Social media is LAMBASTING girls with this c**p and this is what you get. There's no in-between anymore, no Lisa Frank, no fun shopping at Claire's, playing with our littlest pet shops and talking about boys while playing with lip smackers
But Claire’s does still exist. Those little girls think they’re too grown for it probably
Load More Replies...I have 2 Sephora gift cards to spend and I could also use a good throat to punch so, you know...my weekend is planned.
Load More Replies...Parents who let their children on the internet - have snapchat, tiktok, insta, youtube kids, youtube, all the social media THIS is what happens. The ads are targeting children with make-up, facial care, hair care, clothing, water bottles, EVERYTHING. Children thinking they need wrinkle creams? Scrubs? Lathering on creams, foundation, etc and destroying their skin and bodies because they are TOO YOUNG and TOO NAIVE, and their parents are too busy with FOMO of their own. It is appalling to see 10 year olds flexing their face creams in class, flexing that they use a body scrub DAILY. This is 100% a parenting issue - watch what your kids are doing on the internet, guide them, assure them that at 10 they are PERFECT. Social media is NOT a safe place for teens - yep, all teens. The misinformation is outrageous. "influencers" are hawking products to get MONEY, not to help people. It is a giant carny show on the internet. Parents need to STEP IT UP.
I'm a teenager, i grew up in this weird internet time. I totally agree with what you are saying. I was talking with a friend, and she showed me what her 9 year old sister wanted for Christmas. the child was asking for hundred dollar face serums, perfumes, and some makeup items. When i was 9 i wanted books and lego. I feel like being online damages so many of these young children. Parents should guide their children to do the right thing. Being online is seriously damaging for kids mental health as well. There are so many bullies. Also, when something is meant for teenagers, and i see a bunch of children on it, it kind of ruins the experience. Going on a social media, and realizing half the people there are under the age of 13, it's not fun. I don't even use SM that often, only when i have to. So many corporation/schools are using SM as means of communication, and i hate this fact. I have to use facebook to make sure i don't miss homework from my school. teachers don't email, they just post on facebook.
Load More Replies...I was reading a response to this, where millennial women were saying that all the tween girl spaces have been removed. And it's true, there's "little kids" and then instant adultifying of specifically girls, with all the "self care" and make up tutorials and beauty products. Social media is LAMBASTING girls with this c**p and this is what you get. There's no in-between anymore, no Lisa Frank, no fun shopping at Claire's, playing with our littlest pet shops and talking about boys while playing with lip smackers
But Claire’s does still exist. Those little girls think they’re too grown for it probably
Load More Replies...I have 2 Sephora gift cards to spend and I could also use a good throat to punch so, you know...my weekend is planned.
Load More Replies...
11
69