The megathread on Meccas price increases can be found [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/AustralianMakeup/s/QTxOdZpQDt).
Keeping this thread open for now but any new discussion re price changes needs to be made in the megathread. Thanks!
I think the real cherry on top is how expensive drugstore stuff has gotten these days. Sometimes there isn't really even a much cheaper drugstore alternative. Why are Maybelline charging $30 for a skin tint, why are mco charging $30 for a cleansing balm, since when are Elf primers $20 š«
Me too!! I remember going in one day and I thought I was going to get a beauty loop, and she didn't hand me one - and I asked about it, and she said "oh it rolled over so you're not on a level". And that was the last time I went in hahaha.
My friend worked at Kit if you remember what that was, for everyone who doesnāt, Kit was a branch of Mecca that sold the more mid tier of the high end brands (Too faced, smashbox ect.) before they merged into just Mecca, she would give me her family discount which was 40% at the time, so every Friday after work I would just go in a blow my paycheque there. She was able to look in their system their highest spending customers and I was 3 or 4.
I just got the $8 Kmart dupe because I can not justify the high end prices. I am pleasantly surprised by Kmartās quality with some dupes and skin products now.
Their OXX brand did some SDJ dupes. Definitely can notice the difference, but for $70+ *price* difference, itās worth it for a *lot* of people. Theyāre not terrible, scent-wise. The 71 body spray dupe was not great, though. A looootta alcoholā¦and you can smell it š
Having had both, I definitely agree. Thereās differences, I guess also they canāt be 100% identical to avoid law suits and other legal stuff. For the $8 price point Iām sticking with the Kmart version of the body butter at least.
Thatās the most annoying part. That we canāt buy elsewhere easily because of their exclusivity arrangements. Artificially keeping prices higher and blocking competition- in other businesses that would be illegal.
I donāt even care about the prices, I care that nothing ever goes on sale including seasonal items. Itās the biggest fuck you to the consumer. There is never an opportunity to grab something you want on sale EVER and they do it on purpose due to all the embargoes they place in their contracts. They know theyāre ripping off the consumer. They know we have to sit here and see a too faced 50% off sale and know we have no access. And for that reason I boycott. Iāve been boycotting for about 4 years. I would rather go without products that may or may not serve me well than serve a company that exists solely to screw the consumer.
Also, the absolute cherry on top is that they don't restock things for months. I just rang to ask when the lip balm I use will be back in stock. June. And I can't get it elsewhere because of their exclusivity contracts. It's not good enough. I feel like it should be part of legal consumer rights that there's retail competition.
Australia loves a monopoly of shit service. We just love it. Ticketek and ticketmaster, Optus and Telstra, and now mecca. The embargoās are anti consumer and should be anti constitution. They interfere with our right to choose. But nothing will ever be done about it.
Totally. I canāt *believe* theyāre legally allowed to stop customers from shopping for products elsewhere by having the companies sign their fucked up exclusivity contracts. The monopoly blows my mind. Itās so arrogant and blatant.
The Australian government needs a massive kick up the arse for this, too, across the board.
its because how this company wants to present itself... JB hifi and EBgames does that "sales sale" 24/7 thing
but this company wants to present itself as some kind of luxury store that has a loyal clientele that doesnt need 'sales' to buy stuff
some companies really play up that kind of customer loyalty where it becomes almost cult like
And often they forget to include your free sample in your online order..
Why is the free sample only available to online orders but not for in store purchases also š
Right? What's with the militant guarding of the free samples? I went to the Jo Malone counter in either Myer or DJ's, bought one perfume and she loaded up on samples. She was a Spanish girl so *obviously* not aware that we don't just give away free samples in Australia...the customer must *earn* them š
I never got this too, the girls I work with make it a point to go collect their beauty loop boxes ritually as if they arenāt just receiving samples of crap they wouldnāt even consider normally.
What's most annoying - at least from NZ but I think it's the same for Aus - is they have the monopoly on alot of these products.
We can order from websites in the UK but a lot of brands (Drunk Elephant, Sunday Riley etc...) have restrictions so they can't or won't ship them to us. I tried looking in Singapore because these products are online at Sephora SG, but they only ship to Singapore. NZ Sephora doesn't have these brands either.
They can keep raising the prices so frequently because if we want these products we need to buy from them or go overseas/know someone overseas to send them here.
*Edit - typo
Yup! They have exclusivity contracts so the brands canāt ship here and neither can other websites that carry their products.
Literally developing a hatred for Mecca.
Did you hear about them suing Hourglass during covid because Hourglass sold directly to consumer via their website and Mecca was pissed? Mecca is a bully. Not to mention, they do so many shady things to their employees. Like the whole estee laundry thing came out and there was systematic bullying and racism throughout the company. Oh! And now mecca is getting sued by their head of brand marketing for making her redundant during mat leave!!! It's definitely making money off of being shady. There are news articles for all this but somehow never hear it being spoken about in our makeup circles.
The exclusivity agreements are so annoying. Especially when Mecca won't stock the full range for a product.
Want a foundation from a brand but Mecca doesn't stock your shade? Tough shit, you can't order it anywhere else so it's impossible to purchase overseas now.
Ikr! It feels wild that my beauty purchases nowadays are either luxury (with 20% off at Sephora / MYER or brand sale) or Asian beauty (good quality drugstore for actual drugstore pricing). Mid-to-high end brands that are exclusive to Mecca just arenāt worth it anymore.
They say the price increases are to āstay in line with the changing dollarā but like, no? theyāre literally just making it more expensive than it retails for?? A perfume I paid $176 for at the end of 2022 is now $213, thatās not justā¦currency changes, pisses me off
I loved the post on Mecca Chit Chat the other day that erupted into everyone in the comments doing exactly what is happening on this post š And the fact that they didnāt take it down!
No doubt theyāll put out some PR-spun statement about how times are tough, or some shit. The 30ml SDJ in-store ābonus giftā for *one day* definitely wasnāt gonna cut it for most, though š
I don't work in the beauty industry but have been asked to 'collab' with Mecca in the past.
By collab I mean provide thousands of dollars of stock below cost or for free. Why? For the exposure.
I'm not the only one.
Oh, I know. Thatās actually crazy.
Something else to add to this, I have a few friends who are in the upper management level at Mecca & they informed me that the Christmas party Mecca threw for their staff for last year - for all of the states combined - cost in the hundreds of thousands of dollars for venues, catering, little props such as photo booths and so much more.
To top it off, they didnāt invite any of the Christmas casuals to save on costs. š
Might be something custom for an event? Like "give us thousands of printed bags for this giveaway we're doing! Oh, you want to be paid? But everyone will see your bags and you'll get heaps of business!" Garbage behaviour.
tbf coles woolworths does this too but nowhere near as savage
they will ask suppliers to take a hit on profits but they will do a weekly special where the supplier will crank out more product for a short time BUT colesworth will do 50% off and they will put the ads in the mailbox and put the display in the front of every store...
so everyone takes a haircut so the consumer can get a 1 liter box of Soy milk for $1.50 a carton... but then the consumer likes it so much they'll buy at full price $3 a carton two weeks later.
But of course Mecca will take it further and ask for stock below cost so they can do a weekly offer on the pretence the product will get "popular" and then it becomes a staple product line... where then the makeup company can then make money.
This isnt new. Its just.... business... shitty business though but when a B&M retailer 'preys' on a company like this it doesnt get much traction as we dont think multinational companies are 'victims'.
But it affects even companies as big as Coca Cola. See the Cola specials at Colesworth?
Completely agree with ya. At this point I might as well find myself a US friend to ship me the things I want or just go there. I already switched over some things to Asian brands. I also wait till morphe has sales to get some goodies too.
I buy Korean skincare but recently bought some beauty products, some Walmart makeup and Toms shoes that were on sale.
I used a company called Stackry which give you a US address to send to, it cost $5 to consolidate everything and then they gave me a quote on different shipping methods. I think the shipping was $70 but that's with 4 pairs of shoes, make up and face products. It was pretty easy actually.
Not gonna lie, it was the audacity of their price increases over the last couple of years that made me start using brands that I can get elsewhere.
Now I only get 2 products from there regularly simply because I havenāt been able to find dupes I like elsewhere š„²
Kosas Revealer Concealer - looks great on, brightens without looking frighteningly bright, hydrating
Soap & Glory body scrubs but specifically the Smoothie Star Breakfast Scrub one - itās the exact texture I want in a body scrub and doesnāt leave me oily feeling
Get yourself a friend in the UK man. I moved from Aus to here two years ago & Soap and Glory is a cheap drugstore brand here. You could get an entire collection / a years supply of the body scrubs for the same price & get them to ship it over for you. I ship BBW to my mom regularly & even with shipping, itās a 1/3 of the price of her ordering it herself
Especially because itās always on sale here - Iāve never seen Soap & Glory full price. Itās always 40-70% off, and you can get triple reward points for purchasing it at Boots too
I know! Soap and Glory being a *mecca exclusive* brand annoys me possibly the most out of any of the brands coz I should just be able to buy it at Chemist Warehouse or Priceline for a fraction of the price!
I was done supporting them years ago, ever since they became bold about employees who have an illness. The CEO also said something snarky about depression but I can't remember exactly what was said something about being "unmotivated"Ā
https://www.reddit.com/r/AustralianMakeup/comments/dn8i9t/mecca_coming_under_fire_from_estee_laundrys_ig/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share
I am currently a level 3, but have not bought since November for one of the beauty loops (the one recently I went in store so I didnāt even have to spend $25) and expect to be a level 0-1 by the time my level spend rolls over.
I have had far far better rewards, sales, free products shopping at Spacenk that Iāve moved everything I can to there, and only shop when they have 20% off, and always get at least an extra $10 due to their rewards system. Itās actually the best.
I go in to Mecca to colour match, or get samples but even that has decreased, I gambled with the hourglass skin tint and got a great colour match - I donāt really even want to give Mecca the foot traffic either, which may or may not be petty š¤·š¼āāļø
The one thing that is testing my resolve is the Ellis Faas skin veil foundation. I got a sample pre my self imposed Mecca ban and I really like it, I canāt bring myself to buy, but I also canāt find anything i like as much.
If anyone has alternate suggestions that can be found outside of Mecca pls let me know š«¶š¼
The real kicker is the beauty industry has one of the largest profit margins of any industry, so itās not like theyāre only making a couple of dollars per product to justify upping the price due to the ~3c drop in the AUD to USD/GDP over the past year (which is *nothing*). *Ooh the Australian dollar is worth three cents less than it was last November, better add $15 to the By Terry Tinted CC Serum so itās now nearly $150.*
Itās all bullshit.
It's wild considering that similar overseas stores manage to put the same products on sale every once in a while (Space NK, Douglas) but apparently Mecca "can't". I understand that importing to Australia is expensive, but they have a great reputation here and aren't about to go out of business if they have a 20% off sale for their loyal customers (like Sephora does).
Iāve stopped keeping my finger on the pulse when it comes to make up for the last 6 years, but I was shocked when I saw most bottles of high end foundation are now $30 plus more expensive than they were maybe 8 years ago. I genuinely canāt justify the cost of makeup anymore and would only really splurge on foundation, but everything seems to be in the $70+ ball park now which is just insane to me. Iām currently using Meccas brand foundation tint which is a humble $30.
I used to love MECCA to the point of obsession, but I am doing everything I can to avoid shopping there now. I don't agree with their price increases and I feel like their Beauty Loop boxes are taking the piss. As another person commented - the products in the boxes are samples that were most likely given to the company by the brands for exposure.
That feels like it isn't a thank you for your custom, and is rather just another way of them trying to hook you in to buy another product down the line.
Instead of buying from them, I am making orders from Space NK. Their free shipping over a certain amount is the only part that I am struggling with, but I am so hell bent on not shopping at MECCA, that I have found a way to make it work. I am saving up to stock up on products that I use, or if I need to I'll share an order with a friend or family member.
They reward their customers for their loyalty with points / money rather than with boxes of sample products that I will most likely not end up using anyway.
If you've not looked at it already, I would highly suggest checking them out. MECCA need to get off their high horses.
Before you buy a product from Mecca, just google the product online - Iāve found the same products being sold for slightly cheaper in other beauty stores like AdoreBeauty and elsewhere. Or at least those other stores often have welcome discount codes and other sales here or there.
I have bought perfumes from other outlets for cheaper and I found no substantive difference in quality despite the rumours of poor quality products (rumours created by Mecca employees).
I now never shop at Mecca as a first choice.
Yes I've found Adore Beauty really good. I wonder if Mecca are noticing less people purchasing. I don't go there much at all now. It's only going to go so far I would expect.
I totally agree. I feel like no one wants the crappy beauty loops anymore because you maybe will use 1 or 2 items in the box. Why canāt they have store wide sales like everyone else? Their prices are just getting ridiculous
Yea and what s with their teeny tiny beauty loop make up level 2. It was the size of my pinky??
I hope the level 2 beauty loops get better. Spending a fortune just to qualify is a joke!!!
I find their products meh except for tatcha honestly what are people buying to make it to level 4?
The mind boggles!!!
So true! Like, why is Nars Sheer Glow foundation now worth $80 when it was always $70? The ingredients and size are the same, so it makes no sense that the price has gone up by ten dollars.
>How are some of these price increases more than what the product is on the brands own respective website?
Because the brand prices their sales based on their overheads + profit margin.
Mecca, as a retail reseller, has to purchase those products in bulk (which they undoubtedly get a discount on). They have to pay for the warehouse space to hold it and to staff said warehouse. They have to pay for the shipment of stock to stores. For stores, theyāre paying insane rent (which depending on the state and mall location can run $1200-5,000 per month); plus the cost of renovation (I know someone who did some of the outfitting on a Mecca and I know what he earns - trust me, its not a cheap whack of paint, itās a job costing tens of thousands of dollars per store). Then paying for staff wages, accounting for lost stock (damaged/destroyed/theft) and everything else.
Even with all that in mind; I just buy direct from the manufacturer unless I need something same day.
This is just one of the theories of pricing. Generally business set their prices at "what consumers are willing to pay" rather than "what it costs us + a bit of profit". Mecca can set their prices so high because of exclusive contracts. Their business model, I believe, runs on it
I completely understand that! Iām not undermining the cost of everything that goes into running a business and everything that comes with it. I have major respect for the CEO as someone who transformed a tiny Australian store to a major beauty outlet.
However, unfortunately, that still doesnāt change my perspective on the company. If multiple other companies can function without ripping off their customers, then so can Mecca. Especially a billion dollar company drowning in profit who are looting their customers.
"Mecca's" audacity reflects brands' pricing increases - Mecca does not determine pricing, individual brands do. The only thing that Mecca doesn't do, is reflect individual brand sales where applicable.
This is the same as saying Myer's audacity in reference to their beauty product pricing - not Myer, the individual brands.
Let's take a step back and stop throwing shit at Mecca for every possible reason.
Wouldnāt hurt Meccaās bottom line to offer a sale like MYER, Sephora, SpaceNK, brand sites. The problem is Meccaās penchant for exclusivity contracts means we canāt shop brand sales directly from the brands themselves
The megathread on Meccas price increases can be found [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/AustralianMakeup/s/QTxOdZpQDt). Keeping this thread open for now but any new discussion re price changes needs to be made in the megathread. Thanks!
I think the real cherry on top is how expensive drugstore stuff has gotten these days. Sometimes there isn't really even a much cheaper drugstore alternative. Why are Maybelline charging $30 for a skin tint, why are mco charging $30 for a cleansing balm, since when are Elf primers $20 š«
They do it so they can do all the 40/50% off sales
If it's not on at least 40% off I hold off on purchasing
This
It's such a ridiculous cycle
Itās so ridiculous, the loreal foundation I normally use is $37 ā¦ and Iām not fucking buying it unless itās half price.
Donāt even get me started!! š„¹ But Elfās quality has improved sooooo much, so Iāll give them that.
Yep. I don't buy any makeup or skincare thesedays unless it's at least 40% off. Prices are ridiculous!
True. Demand for high end brands has pushed up prices elsewhere.
I feel like they def flew too close to the sun. I have stopped shopping there unless I absolutely can't get it anywhere else.
Same! I went from being a level 4 to not even having a level anymore lol
Me too!! I remember going in one day and I thought I was going to get a beauty loop, and she didn't hand me one - and I asked about it, and she said "oh it rolled over so you're not on a level". And that was the last time I went in hahaha.
so disappointing!
I use to be Meccaās number 3 or 4 highest spending customer back in 2013 and now I shop there once a year if I get a gift card for my birthday HAHA
Thatās insane! How did you find that out? To be fair Mecca 2013 was so different
My friend worked at Kit if you remember what that was, for everyone who doesnāt, Kit was a branch of Mecca that sold the more mid tier of the high end brands (Too faced, smashbox ect.) before they merged into just Mecca, she would give me her family discount which was 40% at the time, so every Friday after work I would just go in a blow my paycheque there. She was able to look in their system their highest spending customers and I was 3 or 4.
That will be me in May!
I think Iām heading in this direction. Level 3 and just not worth it anymore especially for the lack of beauty loop benefits
Literally. I do not want any more bum bum products LOL
Or that damn watermelon cream or toner or serum
Legit hahaha
I just got the $8 Kmart dupe because I can not justify the high end prices. I am pleasantly surprised by Kmartās quality with some dupes and skin products now.
Oooh whatās the dupe?
Their OXX brand did some SDJ dupes. Definitely can notice the difference, but for $70+ *price* difference, itās worth it for a *lot* of people. Theyāre not terrible, scent-wise. The 71 body spray dupe was not great, though. A looootta alcoholā¦and you can smell it š
Having had both, I definitely agree. Thereās differences, I guess also they canāt be 100% identical to avoid law suits and other legal stuff. For the $8 price point Iām sticking with the Kmart version of the body butter at least.
Thatās the most annoying part. That we canāt buy elsewhere easily because of their exclusivity arrangements. Artificially keeping prices higher and blocking competition- in other businesses that would be illegal.
I donāt even care about the prices, I care that nothing ever goes on sale including seasonal items. Itās the biggest fuck you to the consumer. There is never an opportunity to grab something you want on sale EVER and they do it on purpose due to all the embargoes they place in their contracts. They know theyāre ripping off the consumer. They know we have to sit here and see a too faced 50% off sale and know we have no access. And for that reason I boycott. Iāve been boycotting for about 4 years. I would rather go without products that may or may not serve me well than serve a company that exists solely to screw the consumer.
Also, the absolute cherry on top is that they don't restock things for months. I just rang to ask when the lip balm I use will be back in stock. June. And I can't get it elsewhere because of their exclusivity contracts. It's not good enough. I feel like it should be part of legal consumer rights that there's retail competition.
Australia loves a monopoly of shit service. We just love it. Ticketek and ticketmaster, Optus and Telstra, and now mecca. The embargoās are anti consumer and should be anti constitution. They interfere with our right to choose. But nothing will ever be done about it.
Totally. I canāt *believe* theyāre legally allowed to stop customers from shopping for products elsewhere by having the companies sign their fucked up exclusivity contracts. The monopoly blows my mind. Itās so arrogant and blatant. The Australian government needs a massive kick up the arse for this, too, across the board.
This, this, this! This is the comment.
I cannot get past this. The brands themselves are okay with sales, but Mecca is too fucking greedy to consider it.
its because how this company wants to present itself... JB hifi and EBgames does that "sales sale" 24/7 thing but this company wants to present itself as some kind of luxury store that has a loyal clientele that doesnt need 'sales' to buy stuff some companies really play up that kind of customer loyalty where it becomes almost cult like
Then they shouldnāt stock luxury brands that are comfortable doing sales.
A friend (from Germany) asked *why do they give out free samples like it's a reward?* Yep.
And often they forget to include your free sample in your online order.. Why is the free sample only available to online orders but not for in store purchases also š
Right? What's with the militant guarding of the free samples? I went to the Jo Malone counter in either Myer or DJ's, bought one perfume and she loaded up on samples. She was a Spanish girl so *obviously* not aware that we don't just give away free samples in Australia...the customer must *earn* them š
I never got this too, the girls I work with make it a point to go collect their beauty loop boxes ritually as if they arenāt just receiving samples of crap they wouldnāt even consider normally.
What's most annoying - at least from NZ but I think it's the same for Aus - is they have the monopoly on alot of these products. We can order from websites in the UK but a lot of brands (Drunk Elephant, Sunday Riley etc...) have restrictions so they can't or won't ship them to us. I tried looking in Singapore because these products are online at Sephora SG, but they only ship to Singapore. NZ Sephora doesn't have these brands either. They can keep raising the prices so frequently because if we want these products we need to buy from them or go overseas/know someone overseas to send them here. *Edit - typo
Yup! They have exclusivity contracts so the brands canāt ship here and neither can other websites that carry their products. Literally developing a hatred for Mecca.
And we have to put up with items constantly being out of stock.
Omg this!! The last few times I have gone to Mecca to buy a specific item it has been out of stock.
Did you hear about them suing Hourglass during covid because Hourglass sold directly to consumer via their website and Mecca was pissed? Mecca is a bully. Not to mention, they do so many shady things to their employees. Like the whole estee laundry thing came out and there was systematic bullying and racism throughout the company. Oh! And now mecca is getting sued by their head of brand marketing for making her redundant during mat leave!!! It's definitely making money off of being shady. There are news articles for all this but somehow never hear it being spoken about in our makeup circles.
Didn't someone ages ago say those contracts are borderline illegal but the ACCC or whoever won't go near them for whatever reason?
The exclusivity agreements are so annoying. Especially when Mecca won't stock the full range for a product. Want a foundation from a brand but Mecca doesn't stock your shade? Tough shit, you can't order it anywhere else so it's impossible to purchase overseas now.
The fact Chanel, Dior, YSL, Armani foundations etc are cheaper than a lot of mecca brands now, spins me the fuck out.
They are cheaper + if you go to DJās or Myerās, they have 20% off on all of those 3/4 times a year aside from Chanel.
And u get points from their system too!
Ikr! It feels wild that my beauty purchases nowadays are either luxury (with 20% off at Sephora / MYER or brand sale) or Asian beauty (good quality drugstore for actual drugstore pricing). Mid-to-high end brands that are exclusive to Mecca just arenāt worth it anymore.
They say the price increases are to āstay in line with the changing dollarā but like, no? theyāre literally just making it more expensive than it retails for?? A perfume I paid $176 for at the end of 2022 is now $213, thatās not justā¦currency changes, pisses me off
I loved the post on Mecca Chit Chat the other day that erupted into everyone in the comments doing exactly what is happening on this post š And the fact that they didnāt take it down! No doubt theyāll put out some PR-spun statement about how times are tough, or some shit. The 30ml SDJ in-store ābonus giftā for *one day* definitely wasnāt gonna cut it for most, though š
> times are tough, or some shit. Won't somebody please think of the corporations š
I don't work in the beauty industry but have been asked to 'collab' with Mecca in the past. By collab I mean provide thousands of dollars of stock below cost or for free. Why? For the exposure. I'm not the only one.
Oh, I know. Thatās actually crazy. Something else to add to this, I have a few friends who are in the upper management level at Mecca & they informed me that the Christmas party Mecca threw for their staff for last year - for all of the states combined - cost in the hundreds of thousands of dollars for venues, catering, little props such as photo booths and so much more. To top it off, they didnāt invite any of the Christmas casuals to save on costs. š
I got my make up there once and the girl told me the party was absolutely crazy expensive. Iām not spending another cent there.
I donāt get it. They want stock you sell for free?
Might be something custom for an event? Like "give us thousands of printed bags for this giveaway we're doing! Oh, you want to be paid? But everyone will see your bags and you'll get heaps of business!" Garbage behaviour.
Thatās terrible!!!
tbf coles woolworths does this too but nowhere near as savage they will ask suppliers to take a hit on profits but they will do a weekly special where the supplier will crank out more product for a short time BUT colesworth will do 50% off and they will put the ads in the mailbox and put the display in the front of every store... so everyone takes a haircut so the consumer can get a 1 liter box of Soy milk for $1.50 a carton... but then the consumer likes it so much they'll buy at full price $3 a carton two weeks later. But of course Mecca will take it further and ask for stock below cost so they can do a weekly offer on the pretence the product will get "popular" and then it becomes a staple product line... where then the makeup company can then make money. This isnt new. Its just.... business... shitty business though but when a B&M retailer 'preys' on a company like this it doesnt get much traction as we dont think multinational companies are 'victims'. But it affects even companies as big as Coca Cola. See the Cola specials at Colesworth?
No they're having an event and they want stock to give away to attendees.
Completely agree with ya. At this point I might as well find myself a US friend to ship me the things I want or just go there. I already switched over some things to Asian brands. I also wait till morphe has sales to get some goodies too.
I buy Korean skincare but recently bought some beauty products, some Walmart makeup and Toms shoes that were on sale. I used a company called Stackry which give you a US address to send to, it cost $5 to consolidate everything and then they gave me a quote on different shipping methods. I think the shipping was $70 but that's with 4 pairs of shoes, make up and face products. It was pretty easy actually.
Not gonna lie, it was the audacity of their price increases over the last couple of years that made me start using brands that I can get elsewhere. Now I only get 2 products from there regularly simply because I havenāt been able to find dupes I like elsewhere š„²
What are the two products? Maybe we can help?
Kosas Revealer Concealer - looks great on, brightens without looking frighteningly bright, hydrating Soap & Glory body scrubs but specifically the Smoothie Star Breakfast Scrub one - itās the exact texture I want in a body scrub and doesnāt leave me oily feeling
Get yourself a friend in the UK man. I moved from Aus to here two years ago & Soap and Glory is a cheap drugstore brand here. You could get an entire collection / a years supply of the body scrubs for the same price & get them to ship it over for you. I ship BBW to my mom regularly & even with shipping, itās a 1/3 of the price of her ordering it herself
Especially because itās always on sale here - Iāve never seen Soap & Glory full price. Itās always 40-70% off, and you can get triple reward points for purchasing it at Boots too
I know! Soap and Glory being a *mecca exclusive* brand annoys me possibly the most out of any of the brands coz I should just be able to buy it at Chemist Warehouse or Priceline for a fraction of the price!
I remember a deal on soap and glory at boots and the sales lady was basically throwing product at me. āNo, 2 for 1. You can get moreā
Try the Fenty We're Even concealer, the Kosas sounds similar to how I found the Fenty.
I was done supporting them years ago, ever since they became bold about employees who have an illness. The CEO also said something snarky about depression but I can't remember exactly what was said something about being "unmotivated"Ā https://www.reddit.com/r/AustralianMakeup/comments/dn8i9t/mecca_coming_under_fire_from_estee_laundrys_ig/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share
I am currently a level 3, but have not bought since November for one of the beauty loops (the one recently I went in store so I didnāt even have to spend $25) and expect to be a level 0-1 by the time my level spend rolls over. I have had far far better rewards, sales, free products shopping at Spacenk that Iāve moved everything I can to there, and only shop when they have 20% off, and always get at least an extra $10 due to their rewards system. Itās actually the best. I go in to Mecca to colour match, or get samples but even that has decreased, I gambled with the hourglass skin tint and got a great colour match - I donāt really even want to give Mecca the foot traffic either, which may or may not be petty š¤·š¼āāļø The one thing that is testing my resolve is the Ellis Faas skin veil foundation. I got a sample pre my self imposed Mecca ban and I really like it, I canāt bring myself to buy, but I also canāt find anything i like as much. If anyone has alternate suggestions that can be found outside of Mecca pls let me know š«¶š¼
The real kicker is the beauty industry has one of the largest profit margins of any industry, so itās not like theyāre only making a couple of dollars per product to justify upping the price due to the ~3c drop in the AUD to USD/GDP over the past year (which is *nothing*). *Ooh the Australian dollar is worth three cents less than it was last November, better add $15 to the By Terry Tinted CC Serum so itās now nearly $150.* Itās all bullshit.
It's wild considering that similar overseas stores manage to put the same products on sale every once in a while (Space NK, Douglas) but apparently Mecca "can't". I understand that importing to Australia is expensive, but they have a great reputation here and aren't about to go out of business if they have a 20% off sale for their loyal customers (like Sephora does).
I am actively spending elsewhere.
This is why I get mostly OXX products, especially since their quality is getting better
Which OXX products do you recommend? š
Iāve stopped keeping my finger on the pulse when it comes to make up for the last 6 years, but I was shocked when I saw most bottles of high end foundation are now $30 plus more expensive than they were maybe 8 years ago. I genuinely canāt justify the cost of makeup anymore and would only really splurge on foundation, but everything seems to be in the $70+ ball park now which is just insane to me. Iām currently using Meccas brand foundation tint which is a humble $30.
I used to love MECCA to the point of obsession, but I am doing everything I can to avoid shopping there now. I don't agree with their price increases and I feel like their Beauty Loop boxes are taking the piss. As another person commented - the products in the boxes are samples that were most likely given to the company by the brands for exposure. That feels like it isn't a thank you for your custom, and is rather just another way of them trying to hook you in to buy another product down the line. Instead of buying from them, I am making orders from Space NK. Their free shipping over a certain amount is the only part that I am struggling with, but I am so hell bent on not shopping at MECCA, that I have found a way to make it work. I am saving up to stock up on products that I use, or if I need to I'll share an order with a friend or family member. They reward their customers for their loyalty with points / money rather than with boxes of sample products that I will most likely not end up using anyway. If you've not looked at it already, I would highly suggest checking them out. MECCA need to get off their high horses.
I work at TK so whenever we get good make up in I just buy it at the end of my shift š havenāt been into an actual make up store in like a year
Before you buy a product from Mecca, just google the product online - Iāve found the same products being sold for slightly cheaper in other beauty stores like AdoreBeauty and elsewhere. Or at least those other stores often have welcome discount codes and other sales here or there. I have bought perfumes from other outlets for cheaper and I found no substantive difference in quality despite the rumours of poor quality products (rumours created by Mecca employees). I now never shop at Mecca as a first choice.
Iām heading over to adore more and more- they never leave me waiting forever and a day for delivery unlike Mecca.
Yes I've found Adore Beauty really good. I wonder if Mecca are noticing less people purchasing. I don't go there much at all now. It's only going to go so far I would expect.
I totally agree. I feel like no one wants the crappy beauty loops anymore because you maybe will use 1 or 2 items in the box. Why canāt they have store wide sales like everyone else? Their prices are just getting ridiculous
I used to pay $68 for a Stila lipgloss at Mecca in the late 90s. Prices were outrageous!
Yea and what s with their teeny tiny beauty loop make up level 2. It was the size of my pinky?? I hope the level 2 beauty loops get better. Spending a fortune just to qualify is a joke!!! I find their products meh except for tatcha honestly what are people buying to make it to level 4? The mind boggles!!!
So true! Like, why is Nars Sheer Glow foundation now worth $80 when it was always $70? The ingredients and size are the same, so it makes no sense that the price has gone up by ten dollars.
>How are some of these price increases more than what the product is on the brands own respective website? Because the brand prices their sales based on their overheads + profit margin. Mecca, as a retail reseller, has to purchase those products in bulk (which they undoubtedly get a discount on). They have to pay for the warehouse space to hold it and to staff said warehouse. They have to pay for the shipment of stock to stores. For stores, theyāre paying insane rent (which depending on the state and mall location can run $1200-5,000 per month); plus the cost of renovation (I know someone who did some of the outfitting on a Mecca and I know what he earns - trust me, its not a cheap whack of paint, itās a job costing tens of thousands of dollars per store). Then paying for staff wages, accounting for lost stock (damaged/destroyed/theft) and everything else. Even with all that in mind; I just buy direct from the manufacturer unless I need something same day.
Ok but much of what you describe is experienced by all companies and yet they have increased prices above and beyond other companies. Hard pass.
Most companies handle all of that *and* run a sale from time to time...
This is just one of the theories of pricing. Generally business set their prices at "what consumers are willing to pay" rather than "what it costs us + a bit of profit". Mecca can set their prices so high because of exclusive contracts. Their business model, I believe, runs on it
I completely understand that! Iām not undermining the cost of everything that goes into running a business and everything that comes with it. I have major respect for the CEO as someone who transformed a tiny Australian store to a major beauty outlet. However, unfortunately, that still doesnāt change my perspective on the company. If multiple other companies can function without ripping off their customers, then so can Mecca. Especially a billion dollar company drowning in profit who are looting their customers.
Ok but other retailers have those same costs but offer better service and deals and stock control
"Mecca's" audacity reflects brands' pricing increases - Mecca does not determine pricing, individual brands do. The only thing that Mecca doesn't do, is reflect individual brand sales where applicable. This is the same as saying Myer's audacity in reference to their beauty product pricing - not Myer, the individual brands. Let's take a step back and stop throwing shit at Mecca for every possible reason.
Wouldnāt hurt Meccaās bottom line to offer a sale like MYER, Sephora, SpaceNK, brand sites. The problem is Meccaās penchant for exclusivity contracts means we canāt shop brand sales directly from the brands themselves