News broke today that Monica Arnaudo, Ulta’s Chief Merchandising Officer, will be stepping down in 2025. Ulta has yet to name a new successor for the position. Monica has only been in the role since 2019 but I’d say in that time Ulta has undergone a lot of rapid changes like the many brands they’ve brought into the store such as Pat Mcgrath, NARS, and more. Not to mention the many interesting and new promotions and rewards perks we’ve gotten in the last few years.
“Ulta Beauty has been just the best company. I’ve been here just over seven years now, and so it’s hard for me to close this corporate chapter of my life,” she said in an interview. “This year marks 45 years in the beauty industry for me. I started when I was 16 so I’ve been thinking about this for a long time and what the next chapter of my life could be, so I’m ready to make this change. I love this industry so much and I love it because of all the great products, but really, what I love the most about it is the people.”
I dunno if her leaving will result in any changes for us as the consumer. Remember her position includes Ulta’s merchandising strategy, product selection, and pricing and bringing in someone new means an entirely new means we’ll experience a new way of shopping at Ulta with any changes (good or bad) that are made. This could be a negative or positive for our shopping experience. I thought it was an interesting piece of news to share today as I’ve become quite the Ulta shopper in the last few years considering the assortment of brands they’ve brought in not to mention their amazing cash back rewards. Sephora sadly fails to reward me for being a loyal customer and Ulta does a way better job pampering me in our relationship. Of course, buying direct from brands lately also, results in some fantastic perks with full-size freebies and rewards programs as well but Ulta is def a nice way to do a one stop shop.
Monica leaving doesn’t necessarily mean anything negative will happen but change of any kind always makes me a nervous nelly! Do you think her stepping down will have any effect consumers?
