Sephoras’ e-commerce stream in Southeast Asia saw a definite growth last year that would have otherwise taken the brand a few years to get to. With this shift in consumer behaviour, Sephora also adapted to become more empathetic while interacting with consumers instead of being “super pushy” in its sales.

Global advertising company Publicis Groupe is on the acquisition trail, picking up Australian-based software as a service platform CitrusAd which helps retailers sell digital advertising to brands.