Yesterday we reported that national retailer Toms is opening a store and cafe off of Bedford Avenue. Turns out that an even chainier chain is opening up right around the corner. Sephora has made it official and unveiled signage indicating it’ll open a store at 241 Bedford, right next to the Apple Store, this fall.
Needless to say, they won’t be opening a tacky megastore like you’d find in Times Square. Much like Starbucks snuck onto N 7th and Bedford with its “Reserve” concept, Sephora will open a Sephora Studio, a smaller store offering “a more curated experience.”
In 2013, when Dunkin’ Donuts opened on Bedford, it registered a 6.3 on our Outrage-o-Meter. But here we are in 2018– when a Happy Socks outlet is also poised to open next to the Dr Martins on Bedford— and nobody has lamented that CB I Hate Perfume, the experimental Williamsburg perfumer that made a scent inspired by Alan Cumming, has moved to New Jersey while Sephora is making itself right at home in prime W’burg. All the opposite:
Guys they’re opening a @Sephora around to corner from me in Williamsburg. WB's transition to the most basic neighborhood in NYC is complete, and I love it 🙈💃🏻💄 pic.twitter.com/AH7GjRW4kd
— Casey McQuillen (@listentocasey_) August 7, 2018
Actually, as you can see below, residents have been downright lobbying for a Sephora since as far back as 2011. Does nobody miss the time when beer burps from the Charleston was the only scent wafting onto Bedford Avenue?
Can they open a Sephora in Williamsburg already? I mean the neighborhood has already sold out…
— Carrie Wilds (@CarrieWilds) September 6, 2011
Hey @Sephora bro can we get a store in Williamsburg, Brooklyn? What year is it
— yung oat milk (@TwittsMcGee) May 13, 2018
From the Department of Nonproblem Problems: As a long-long-term Williamsburg resident, I am absolutely horrified by the continued gentrification of the neighborhood and simultaneously pissed as hell there's no Sephora yet.
— Lisa Rosman (@rosmance) December 14, 2017
Williamsburg friends: how long until Sephora opens here? Asking because hipster indignation/I need lipstick
— Rachelle Bergstein (@RaBergstein) October 18, 2017
https://twitter.com/june__irl/status/891007477994729472?s=21
https://twitter.com/brittneecann/status/883719832360951808?s=21
https://twitter.com/karlacvll/status/655907433026600960?s=21
https://twitter.com/missmagen23/status/634428448518340608?s=21
i wouldnt care about all these chain stores opening in Williamsburg if they were ones that would convenience me in n e way…like a sephora
— Emmie Lichtenberg (@emmieshouse) April 22, 2014
I'm begging you @Sephora please do not open a store in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Otherwise I will need to become a shareholder.
— Jessica Ferri (@JessicaAFerri) September 16, 2016