Deciem is officially out at Sephora, WWD has learned.“The Ordinary is no longer available at Sephora,” a Sephora spokeswoman confirmed in an e-mailed statement to WWD. “While it is disappointing that Deciem has decided to change direction, we remain committed to evolving our unrivaled range of skin-care products to meet the needs of our clients.”Rumors have been swirling about the brand’s exit from the retailer for weeks — and about its eventual entrance into Ulta Beauty, which sources said has been planned for 2019. Deciem launched The Ordinary with Sephora in December, with plans to start online and gradually migrate into stores with the brand, and potentially some of its other brands, founder Brandon Truaxe previously told WWD. Comments on Instagram from the Deciem account indicated the brand would exit Sephora and enter Douglas in Europe and Ulta Beauty. Ulta declined to comment on a potential partnership with the brand, or on timing.Deciem is still chugging along on the business front, despite an erratic series of events over the past few months.Those happenings have included Instagram updates from Truaxe on changing his title to “worker,” and the firing of co-chief executive officer Nicola Kilner in February. In recent weeks, e-mails from Truaxe have gone out to groups of people, including press, executives at the Estée Lauder Cos. Inc., Deciem employees and others, with subjects that range from Deciem to mental health to drugs. One of the e-mails was posted to the Deciem web site but appears to have been removed. Truaxe was not available to comment for this story.According to sources, the company’s Fifth Avenue store — originally part of a plan to open 10 U.S. stores in 2018 — is slated to open later this month. Other stores, on New York’s Prince Street, West Broadway, Upper West Side, Brooklyn and in Miami, have already opened. The business also continues to expand internationally, and has teased a new brand, Avestan, which is slated to launch in the fall.Later this summer, the Toronto team will move into a new headquarters, which is under construction, according to a source.Deciem has also opened a new factory and warehouse facility, a source told WWD, which are now fully operational. Those plants are expected to help Deciem fill more orders — something it has struggled with in the past because of its explosive growth rate.The business was on track to do between $120 million and $150 million in sales for 2017, Truaxe told WWD in December, but with the U.S. launch, that number was expected to, at a minimum, double for 2018.The business is backed by the Estée Lauder Cos., which took a 28 percent stake in June. Lauder did not comment on Deciem’s current retail plans or Truaxe’s e-mails, but a spokeswoman gave WWD a statement saying, “The Estée Lauder Cos. is a minority investor in Deciem and as such, we are not involved in the company’s day-to-day operations. We have seen the potential in this brand and its innovation capabilities.”
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