After 30 years of trading in the heart of the city, beauty retailer Paradise Perfumery decided to launch an online store. Paradiseemporium.com.au offers women from all over Australia the same quality products and high level of customer service Sydneysiders have come to expect from the iconic retailer.
A family owned and operated business, Paradise Emporium offers something no other online beauty retailer in Australia can match, an actual bricks and mortar store location where customers can speak directly to Marnie McClaren (pictured) or her mother Janice Bannister, either in person or over the telephone.
Janice has been running the Paradise Perfumery store in Sydney for 30 years. Marnie was always a regular face at the store, but after her first child was born she decided to pursue a career in nursing. But with a passion for all things fashion and beauty, it wasn’t long before Marnie decided to join her mother to help run Paradise Perfumery and set up its online sister store.
Paradiseemporium.com.au is a true family affair; Marnie’s husband Andrew is a web developer by trade and has set up the easy-to-follow format of the website.
As mother of four, Marnie McClaren explained in a recent telephone interview with Australian Women Online, “We had a very strong mail order business as a lot of the country women don’t have access to all those luxury brands we have here in the city. So we decided to go online in December 2007.”
Paradise Perfumery and www.paradiseemporium.com.au are not discount stores, yet their prices on top of the range, hard to find products and brands, rival that of any of their competitors.
“I find a lot of our competitors don’t have a bricks and mortar store and the only way you can contact them is via email – you don’t see a shop front, only a post office box. So I think that makes us more reputable and people feel very comfortable and safe shopping with us. Also knowing that we have been an established retailer for such a long time has been really helpful for us as well – my mother has a fantastic reputation,” said Marnie.
One of the most popular features on the website is the ‘Paradise Emporium Auctions’. For a small administration fee of between $0.50 and $1, women across Australia can pick up the latest designer fragrance, skincare product, cosmetics, or fashion accessory for as little as one Australian cent in the country’s only dedicated online beauty auctions.
“It’s a reverse auction so we ask people to pay an admin fee to bid. What we ask is that people come on to the website and make a bid they think no-one else will make and then the lowest unique bid wins,” Marnie said.
Please note Paradise Emporium have suspended the Beauty Auctions on their website until further notice.
You can still purchase from Paradise Emporium’s extensive range of beauty and skincare products at their online store www.paradiseemporium.com.au
The iconic Paradise Perfumery located at Shop G16 in the Met Centre, 273 George Street, Sydney
