It's a beautiful plan for department store chains

• Department store chains increased their market share of beauty sales by a full percentage point to 12.7% over the last five years in a positive sign for the sector.
• The group made its gains in the high-end and niche parts of the beauty market, while conceding some parts of the mass market segment to Sally Beauty Holdings (NYSE:SBH), Ulta Salon (NASDAQ:ULTA), and Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) on pricing.
• J.C. Penney (NYSE:JCP) has been a leader with its striking partnership with Sephora (OTCPK:LVMUY, OTCPK:LVMHF), while Macy's (NYSE:M) +$200M acquisition of Bluemercury sets it up to hit luxury shoppers as well. Kohl's (NYSE:KSS) and Dillard's (NYSE:DDS) also are rolling out new beauty and fragrance lines. Beauty is seen as one of the few categories the chains can drive traffic in effectively with marketing.
• Department stores commanded beauty market share of close to 14% before online sales and discounters started kicking into a higher gear.