Last year’s entry of Aesop into the Chinese market exceeded expectations and helped parent company Natura & Co to post Q4 revenues of AUD$2.937 billion – up 3 per cent in constant currency.
The Australian powerhouse brand recorded yet another quarter of double digit growth across all regions – up 18.2 per cent.
Aesop launched two physical stores in China during Q4 and they are already the top two performing stores in the brand’s 287 store global network.
Natura’s own brand products also boosted the Brazilian giant’s bottom line with sales up 10.6 per cent in leading South American markets and 17.9 per cent in its home market.
The news wasn’t so good for Avon International which saw revenues decline by 9.9 per cent over the quarter as Western Europe posted a sluggish performance. But sales were up in the APAC region to counter-balance the drop.
The Body Shop‘s net revenues also dipped 8.4 per cent and job cuts were the order of the day in February. The brand reduced its overall staff by 12 per cent and leadership team by 25 per cent.
In the challenging environment we faced in 2022, we decided mid-year to reassess the group’s growth model to enter a new stabilisation cycle, said Fabio Barbosa, Group CEO of Natura & Co.
“Important changes were carried out, such as a stronger focus on profitability and cash conversion, a revision of cost structure and the role of the holding company, alongside important revisions in our footprint worldwide to position the business for success going forward.
“While we expect 2023 to be another challenging year, our priorities of focusing on cash generation and improving the company’s capital structure will allow us to invest in our priorities, building the path to unlock significant value”.
Following its announcement that Natura & Co was exploring the sale of a minority stake in Aesop in December, Natura & Co has made no further moves and continues to evaluate strategic alternatives for the fast-growing brand.
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