Sephora Beauty Insider, explained: How I accidentally earned Rouge status — and what it's worth

At TPG, I spend a lot of time writing about airline and hotel loyalty programs. Yet I never expected to earn top-tier status through my lip gloss and travel toiletries purchases.Last year, I meticulously tracked every Premier Qualifying Point as I worked toward United Premier Silver status. I even booked a last-minute mileage run to make sure I qualified.Earning Sephora Rouge — Sephora's highest tier in its Beauty Insider loyalty program — on the other hand, was a happy accident.Now that I've had Rouge for a few months, I'm taking a closer look at whether the benefits are valuable enough to keep the status next year, and whether Sephora Beauty Insider is a loyalty program more shoppers should pay attention to.What is the Sephora Beauty Insider program?Sephora Beauty Insider is Sephora's loyalty program that rewards customers for purchases with points, discounts and exclusive perks. The program has three tiers based on annual spending: Insider, VIB and Rouge.Here's how the tiers break down:TierAnnual spendCore benefitsInsiderFree to join Earn 1 point per dollar spent Free birthday gift (spend $25+ to redeem online) Access to rewards Free shipping $10 Beauty Insider Cash (after redee...