Greetings from our nation’s first capital! My partner and I moved to Philadelphia almost a month ago. Having lived in rural towns in Ohio and Connecticut for the past four years, we’re still experiencing some culture shock at being in a major city full of interesting things to see, do, and eat. Believe it or not, the Glossier store is just one of those things, and since it’s located a couple of miles from where we’re living, I didn’t manage to hop on the subway and make the pilgrimage to Center City until yesterday.

You may recall that back in the summer of 2018, I visited the first Glossier store ever, the hot and crowded “showroom” on the top floor of a stately old building in Soho. That store closed at the beginning of the COVID pandemic, but since 2021, Glossier has established ten permanent stores in cities across the United States, plus one in London. (Still waiting patiently for a Glossier San Francisco, guys.) Glossier Philadelphia opened last October on the bustling shopping corridor of Walnut Street, right across from the Rittenhouse Square park.

Each Glossier store is supposed to reflect some cultural aspect of its location, but I can’t help thinking that Glossier kind of phoned it in for Philly. Inspired by the city’s famous museums, Glossier created a space that, according to the brand’s Instagram, “contrasts grand architectural touches and ornate details with a softer, Glossi-er twist. Beyond our double-sided wavy trays, you’ll find muted tones of pink and Cloud Paint skies, taking cues from Rococo art and neoclassical paintings.” This is a pretty Eurocentric interpretation of a famously diverse city, and the “muted tones of pink” and “double-sided wavy trays” are standard features of every Glossier store. I wouldn’t call the art on the walls Rococo or neoclassical, either, but maybe I’m just being a stickler.

This lack of imagination extends to the Philly store’s piece of merchandise. Glossier stores offer city-exclusive collectibles that are in high demand among superfans: a passport holder for London, a beach bag for Miami, a bucket hat for Chicago. Philly’s merch is, wait for it, a mini version of the standard Glossier makeup bag. At least that’s more useful than LA’s flip-phone keychain.

But I’m getting ahead of myself. When I stepped into the store, the first adjective that came to mind was womblike. The space was sparsely populated at 2 pm on a Tuesday (I saw maybe six other customers during my ten minutes there), and the pink walls and organic shapes felt soothing in a primal, even prenatal, way. The store consisted of two large rooms connected with a curving ramp that reminded me of a Fallopian tube. Maybe the design was actually an expression of Glossier’s support of reproductive rights, or an (unconscious?) homage to Philly’s Mütter Museum.

The employees (I saw two on the floor) were friendly but not at all pushy, leaving me plenty of space to browse. I was struck by just how dramatically Glossier’s offerings, especially in color makeup, have expanded in the past five years. I’ve kept track of the new releases online, but seeing them grouped together in a physical space was impressive.

Please don’t zoom in on my sweaty, disheveled self; it was over 90° F outside.

There was a row of products arranged in a glass case on the wall, I guess to heighten the museum effect. Some educational plaques would have been a nice touch.

I was particularly interested in swatching the new limited-edition Cloud Paint shades, Wisp and Soar, which are exclusive to Glossier’s stores and website (i.e. not available in the Sephora down the street). Wisp is a slightly dusty lilac purple, and Soar is a bright coral pink.

I also swatched a few of the No. 1 pencils. L-R: Muse (which I already own and wear often), Rococo, Kiln, and Patina:

Every Glossier store has a small room, sort of a womb inside a womb, with a selfie mirror bearing Glossier’s slogan, “You Look Good.” In the Philly store, this feel-good sentiment was undercut somewhat by the fact that it was printed across a skinny mirror. You’ll just have to take my word that the skinnifying effect, especially on the face, was subtle but noticeable. Come on, Glossier! I suppose the sponge-painted shapes behind me are tributes to clouds in Rococo paintings; a swing would have been a nice addition, as in Fragonard’s famous upskirt painting.

When you want to make a purchase, you tell an employee (“editor”) what you’d like. They process your payment on a tablet, email you a receipt, and send your order to another editor in the back room, and that person brings your bag to the pickup window. Saying “I’d like Cloud Paint in Wisp and Haloscope in Moonstone, please” out loud to another human being was surprisingly awkward; those names just sound as if they belong online.

My bag emerged in a couple of minutes, and I exited the womb and retired to a bench in the park to contemplate my purchases.

Also in the bag were two Philly-exclusive stickers that, if Reddit posts are any indication, I could probably sell on Depop for like $20 each.

After my rest in the park, I walked a mile east to the Queen Village/Bella Vista neighborhood, where I enjoyed an enormous affogato and Hernan Diaz’s novel Trust at one of my favorite coffee shops and bought a cute striped shirt at Philly AIDS Thrift. A red-letter summer afternoon.

Overall, I enjoyed my experience at Glossier Philadelphia! The biggest issues that I noticed in the Soho store (small, cramped, somewhat dirty space; too many sales associates per customer) were absent from the Philly store. I’m sure it gets more crowded on the weekend, but the space seems large enough to accommodate many more people than I saw yesterday.

Reviews of Wisp and Moonstone to come soon!