Has the Amazon beauty reckoning finally arrived?

When Sephora and Ulta officially closed all stores last week to follow U.S. government mandates around controlling coronavirus, beauty brand holdouts began to seriously reconsider distribution elsewhere — namely Amazon. For luxury, prestige and the indie beauty brands, the platform’s proposition in a Covid-19 climate is more than tempting.
Beauty and personal-care products interestingly clear Amazon’s new shipping restrictions announced last week, as they’re categorized as “essential.” (Non-essential products are no longer allowed in Amazon’s warehouses.) What’s more, consumers across the country are practicing social distancing. This means that even though Walmart, Target and CVS remain open — and sell beauty and personal-care products — shopping in these locations has become less desirable. Even Target, best known for its brick-and-mortar prowess, has recently seen online sales pick up. Read more…