Attention, shoppers – new Westchester offerings 

A number of new and expanded businesses are ready to make the holiday shopping experience merry and bright. 

At the Vernon Hills Shopping Center in Eastchester, Saks Off Fifth has opened The Cosmetics Company Store, featuring products by Estée Lauder and many of the brands under its umbrella at discount prices. Estée Lauder brands, which are sold in some 150 countries, include Aerin Beauty, Aveda, Bobbi Brown Cosmetics, Bumble and bumble, Jo Malone London, MAC, La Mer, Origins, Smashbox and Tom Ford. As with any outlet store, the pickings are hit or miss. But we scored a pink, Hermès-style cosmetics bag with several product samples that was probably left over from a gift-with-purchase event at a department store. 

With Sephora just opened, Pottery Barn set to open over the winter and Talbots slated to move to a larger store, Vernon Hills is hopping. 

Over on Central Avenue in Hartsdale, Ulta Beauty is now flanked by Paris Baguette Bakery Café and Barnes & Noble on the same strip once anchored by the late, lamented Christmas Tree Shops. 

Open daily 7 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. since Nov. 21, Paris Baguette is a touch of the City of Lights right down to its black-and-white chevron wicker chairs and custard doughnuts. Goods are made fresh daily, and whatever is leftover is donated to local philanthropies. 

With the presence of Paris Baguette and other coffee shops, the new Barnes & Noble doesn’t have, or need, a café. Nor does it have complete words announcing the sections, due to a problem with the adhesive used in the signage. So the “Classic Books” section is missing the “a,” for instance. But despite a few kinks – a book on “Augustine of Hippo” might better be classified in the religion section as St. Augustine was one of the four doctors of the Roman Catholic Church, along with Sts. Ambrose, Jerome and Gregory the Great – this is one of the best organized and presented Barnes & Nobles stores, with each section distinctive and complete in itself in an airy, blond wood and gray design. And for those of us who still play CDs and DVDs, there’s a nice selection, with CDs 30% off. 

Judging by the flow of patrons, we can say Barnes & Noble and Paris Baguette are quickly filling the void left by the Christmas Tree Shops.