I re-read your question. You most likely got "pre-approved" based off of the amount you spent at ulta and Sephora. Also, they probably did a soft credit inquiry using the info you provided when you signed up for their rewards points system. They don't necessarily need your SSN to do a soft pull. I like to tell people 3 is the maximum amount of credit cards one should have. Avoid retail cards. They almost always carry higher interest rates. That being said my wife has an ulta card that she treats "same as cash." She uses it to get extra points on purchases that turn to cash. My wife is financially responsible and stable. She pays the card off as soon as the charge officially hits. If you shop at ulta a lot like my wife does and if you can honestly say you are financially stable and responsible it's not a bad way to build credit history as long as you don't carry over any balance at the end of the billing cycle. I don't usually recommend credit cards but honestly ulta gives money away. Answer from Deleted User on reddit.com