Sephora taps former Nike eCommerce lead as Greater China MD

Global beauty retailer Sephora has appointed Xia Ding (pictured) as the managing director of Greater China. She is based in Shanghai and reports directly to Sephora’s Asia president, Alia Gogi. 

Within her new role, Ding will lead Sephora's business in Mainland China and Hong Kong that spans around 350 stores, two eCommerce websites, and a robust ecosystem of digital platforms and apps. 

Prior to Sephora, Ding spent five years as vice president and general manager of eCommerce Asia Pacific and Latin America at Nike, where she led the vision, strategy, and full P&L responsibility to drive Nike digital commerce business in APAC and Latin America markets.  

Before Nike, Ding also joined JD.com as the president of JD Fashion where she was responsible for driving the fashion business covering apparel, shoes, sportswear, bags, and jewelry. 

In 2015, she was appointed the vice president of retail service at Nielsen in China, a global information and measurement company. During her two decades of tenure at HanesBrands, Xia Ding was heavily involved in corporate strategy and led its expansion into China. 

Gogi said, "Ding is a quintessential leader with a wealth of experience in running businesses, digital transformations, and strategic business development. I am confident that her skills set, knowledge of brick & mortar retail, expertise in digital and eCommerce, as well as her proven track record in building and sustaining profitable business will take Sephora Greater China into its next phase of growth and success."    

"I am thrilled to join Sephora at a time where the prestige beauty market in China is at the cusp of its next phase of growth. Sephora's allure lies in its powerful curation capabilities, strong culture anchored in purpose and DE&I, and an incredible ability to offer beauty enthusiasts an ever-evolving retail experience," added Ding. 

Don't miss: Sephora unveils 'Store of the Future' in Shanghai to enhance user experience with personalised services

Sephora is the global beauty omni-retailer with approximately 3,000 points of sale across 35 markets. It launched two "Stores of the Future" in Shanghai and Wuhan last year that embodied a new approach to beauty retail with exclusive services, free workshops, and technology details to create a seamless experience for the omni-beauty consumer. 

In tandem with this launch, Sephora is introducing over 220 new products from over 36 global beauty brands to keep consumers apprised of the latest beauty trends such as TATCHA, Hourglass and Anastasia. C-beauty brands such as CHA LING, MAOGEPING LIGHT and WEI will be featured new assortments that are developed as part of the Sephora C-beauty Programme.

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