Natura & Co has long been one of the Big Two of Brazil’s beauty market – the 4th largest in the world after the US, Japan and China. But the company became truly multinational with the acquisitions of Aesop, The Body Shop and Avon International.
The four key pillars enjoyed global sales of 36.9 billion Brazilian Reals (AUD$8.42 billion) in 2020.
The company’s Q4 results have produced another record performance – up 24.1 per cent to 12 billion Brazilian Reals (AUD$2.74 billion).
Digital social selling and e-commerce pushed total digital sales up 79 per cent and all four leading brands posted their highest-ever online sales results.
Aesop’s total online sales for the period surged 190 per cent, reaching 30 per cent of total revenues. Asia was the hotspot for the Aussie-founded brand, notably Japan and South Korea.
The Body Shop quickly switched to online and at-home TV channels during the Covid-19 crisis, with sales rising 13 per cent in Q4 to account for 40 per cent of total sales.
The UK supplied a major boost for Avon International, which saw total revenues climb 12.1 per cent.
Natura & Co’s net profit for the quarter was also up 200 per cent.
Roberto Marques, executive chairman and CEO of Natura & Co noted: “In a year of unprecedented challenges, Natura & Co associates and our network across all of our businesses showed care and adaptability in the face of a global pandemic, demonstrating both our purpose-driven approach to business and the strength of our omnichannel, multi-brand model.
“Our performance in the fourth quarter attests to that, with strong growth in sales and profits. By pivoting rapidly to digital social selling and e-commerce when stores were closed by lockdowns, we were able to outperform the cosmetics, fragrancies and toiletries market both globally and in Brazil.”