The Body Shop’s 113 UK stores will remain trading, as an acquisition deal with a cosmetic consortium was finalised on Friday.
It was announced in July that Aurea group, headed up by former Molton Brown chief executive Charles Denton and beauty tycoon Mike Jatania, entered an exclusivity agreement with The Body Shop’s administrators.
The specialist investment firm will also gain control of The Body Shop’s assets in Australia and North America.
Jatania described The Body Shop as “a truly iconic brand” popular in over 70 markets around the world.
“We plan to focus relentlessly on exceeding their expectations by investing in product innovation and seamless experiences across all of the channels where customers shop,” he said.
In February, the UK arm of The Body Shop collapsed into administration immediately closing almost half of its 198 UK stores. The natural beauty and skin care company had “faced an extended period of financial challenges under past owners, coinciding with a difficult trading environment for the wider retail sector,” according to FRP.
The Bristol-founded business has changed ownership several times over the past few years. It was bought by L’Oreal in 2006, before changing hands again in 2017 when the French cosmetics giant sold it to Brazilian cosmetics maker Natura&Co for €1bn.
Last November, Natura sold it to private investor Aurelius Group in a deal valued at £207mn after struggling financially.
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