How Fohr x Sephora Built the Biggest and Most Diverse Beauty Ambassador Program in the World

How it Began

The brief was simple: "Create a best in class influencer management program with experiences that create Sephora love, reinforce the role Sephora plays in beauty, and make participants feel special for being chosen."

Armed with Sephora’s global purpose to create a welcoming beauty shopping experience and inspire fearlessness in their community, the Fohr team embarked on a mission to discover talent with an unmatched authentic passion for Sephora.

The Challenge

The Sephora team needed bespoke technology to evaluate, vet, authenticate and approve thousands of applicants quickly. They aimed to reach people who genuinely were passionate about and wanted to work with Sephora while honing in on individuals who would drive meaningful relationships for the full year.

We needed to find a way of activating at scale without sacrificing quality. We had to drive measurable brand awareness and high-volume sales simultaneously, while supporting 50+ brands sold at Sephora, with a diverse group of beauty lovers who would commit to being exclusive to the brand.

With all of these goals in mind, the team set out to use both custom technology built by Fohr and expert strategy to build a one-of-a-kind-industry-changing ambassador program.

The program's unique approach to recruiting talent relies on Fohr's proprietary technology that both verifies influencer reach and allows the Fohr team to vet thousands of applications at scale. Applicants were asked to gather Testimonials from their followers to validate their influence, brand loyalty, and genuine capacity to handle a coveted role in the Sephora Squad.

The partnership helps Sephora find influencers who have been traditionally underrepresented in the beauty space, and who also represent their their brand values of inclusivity, individuality, positivity, and belonging.

"Being a 2023 Sephora Squad mentor means that I’m seen, I’m appreciated and I’m valued to the point of being trusted with a mentorship role. That to me as a creator with a disability goes beyond any dream and any goal - Sephora is leading by example and proving that inclusion goes beyond being a part of something beautiful, because I’m now leading others into discovering that they too - belong to something beautiful. Being a 2023 Sephora Squad mentor is the dream I never dared to manifest, and it’s now here."

Steffi Gonzalez

2023 Mentor

Program Architecture

1.

Unearth, empower, celebrate and uplift the most authentic and inspiring voices in beauty

2.

Implement the values of diversity, representation, authenticity, education, and community

3.

Build a program with education-based programming, a frequent feedback loop, detail and due diligence, & operational rigor

Three Focus Areas

Meaningful Partnerships

Applicants gathered 1.5M+ Testimonials from their followers to validate their influence, brand loyalty, and genuine capacity to handle a coveted role in the Sephora Squad
Not just a talent pool at the ready, the Squad offers long-term partnerships going beyond one-off campaigns
Contracts catered to individual passions and strengths

Community Building

Alumni and Mentor resources for continued education, including office hours, Squad School, a private Instagram channel, and the RTRO community app
Workshops and knowledge sharing throughout the program
Community hub that houses inspiration and resources

Best-in-Class Content

Content for organic usage and paid capacities
Fohr strategy and campaign management ensures premium content briefs which leads to the highest quality content
360 Content Approach (Twitch, YT, Events, Newsletters, IG, TT, Pinterest, etc)

51,308+

Applicants

1.5M+

Fan testimonials

86,796+

Lifetime Instagram posts

1B+

TikTok hashtag views

Single Brand Campaigns

Fohr and Sephora continue to open doors for Sephora Squad members by providing authentic opportunities for the Squad to build relationships with brands sold at Sephora. This has been done through campaign collaborations and unique mentorship moments throughout their partnership, as well as beyond their Sephora Squad contracts.

High Quality Assets

In turn, Fohr works closely with brand partners to select the most effective creators, deliverables, and messaging to meet their goals. The end result being connection with true brand ambassadors, creation of a high quality asset bank of content, and the opportunity to reach new, diverse audiences.

5 Years and Counting...

First launched in 2019, the Sephora Squad became immediately synonymous with best-in-class influencer marketing — a program befitting the global prestige retailer. The Sephora Squad is an ambassador program that has proven the power of community when there’s brand commitment and investment. Sephora organically tapped into the beauty community they serve in a way that no other program has been able to.

From its inception, Sephora has partnered with Fohr to support their community, program, and tech management, utilizing Fohr’s SaaS product and a custom-built application vetting tool to find influencers with real brand love (AMP) for Sephora.

Sephora’s customers love the Squad. They want to be in the Squad and/or they want to see their favorite creators in it. For those who join the ranks of this prestigious program, it’s a life-changing experience that launches careers, nurtures a strong network of empathetic peers, and provides an institutional support system.

For the last five years, Sephora and Fohr’s partnership set the standard with a best-in-class ambassador and influencer marketing program, known by anyone with an interest in prestige beauty, fearless creatives, or wildly curious experimenters as Sephora Squad.

The Sephora Squad has evolved beyond just a beauty ambassador program - it has established itself as an institution.

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