Sephora Is Rolling Out ‘Quiet Hours’ Worldwide — Here’s What That Sounds Like

Lower music, dimmed screens, less stimulation. Sephora joins Walmart, Target and AMC in a growing accessibility trend.

For some shoppers, bright lights, blaring music and crowded aisles make a simple trip to the store feel like Times Square. “Sephora is always so challenging for me to tolerate,” Love on the Spectrum cast member Kaelynn Partlow wrote on social media.

Sephora is trying to fix that. The beauty retailer is expanding its “Quiet Hours” initiative worldwide after a pilot at 32 stores across eight markets got positive feedback from shoppers and employees, People reports. During designated hours, stores lower music, dim digital screens and cut sensory distractions.

Sephora developed the program with input from neurodiversity advocacy groups Open Inclusion and Purposeful Futures. It joins a growing list of retailers also turning down the volume. Walmart made its sensory-friendly hours permanent across US and Puerto Rico stores back in 2023. AMC Theatres runs Sensory Friendly Film screenings with the Autism Society. Target and Chuck E. Cheese have rolled out their own versions too. For retailers, accessibility is quietly becoming a real point of differentiation, not just a goodwill gesture.