Are Sephora Stores In Penneys Connected To Free Standing Sephora Stores?

I returned something to a Sephora inside a JC Penney store. I didn't have the receipt. I was told thatJC Penneys had a " return without receipt" policy and I would not be able to return anything on the future without a receipt.Two months later, I was in a " freestanding" Sephora trying to return a God awful cream.Nope, I did not have receipt with me and was told that I couldn't exchange it.This has NEVER happened in the 20 plus years that I have shopped at Sephora. Any chance it had something to do with the incident at Penneys? One of the reasons I have been a LOYAL customer and have spent thousands at Sephora is their willingness to return items without having saved the receipt.Thanks for any help, Marianne