Target teams up with Ulta to bring premium makeup to a store near you

(Image credit: Getty Images)

published 23 July 2021

From August, Ulta Beauty will be opening mini-shops inside of Target stores.

The shops will sell brands sold at Ulta but not typically found at Target, making it much easier to pick up a selection of the best foundation, lipstick, bronzer, mascara and more.

Brands set to be sold in these mini-stores include Anastasia Beverly Hills, bareMinerals, Clinique, IT Cosmetics, MAC Cosmetics, Morphe, Philosophy, Smashbox, St. Tropez, Sunday Riley, Tarte, The Ordinary, Too Faced, Ulta Beauty Collection and Urban Decay.

Target employees will receive specialty training to be able to discuss and recommend Ulta products, and customers will be able to test samples.

The chains plan to open 100 stores by the end of the year and to expand to 800 Target shops over the next few years. Each mini-shop will be about 1,000-square-feet and feature orange and pink Ulta branding. They will be located near the existing Target beauty section and will feature specialized displays, “discovery zones” and on-trend, season-specific products.

“Ulta Beauty at Target is unmatched in the industry, bringing guests the opportunity to discover new prestige brands while they shop Target’s incredible beauty assortment,” said Christina Hennington, executive vice president and chief growth officer at Target in a blog post.

The deal is meant to help Ulta Beauty expand its customer base, and to help Target grow. Target has paid Ulta for royalties up front and the model has worked before with Target opening Levi’s and Disney mini-shops inside its stores previously.

A selection of premium beauty products will also be available on Target’s website. When buying in-store or online, customers can receive both Target and Ulta rewards points at the same time, a double bonus. In addition, customers who use their Target Red card will receive the customary 5% discount, a good deal when compared to shopping at a standalone Ulta store.

The first 100 stores will open in Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, and more. See the full list at Target.

Rebecca Holland is a travel and food writer based in Chicago. She has written for the Guardian, New York Times, Architectural Digest, Food & Wine, Wine Enthusiast and more. She is currently a graduate student at Northwestern's Medill School of Journalism. When not working, you can find her eating her way through Chicago's neighborhoods, or in non-pandemic times, traveling around the world.