Ten years ago, Natura & Co, the global personal care company and owner of The Body Shop and Avon, bought Aesop for $68 million.
The Aussie luxury cosmetics brand, founded 35 years ago in Melbourne, has continued to prove its value. With more than 235 own brand signature stores worldwide in more than 25 countries, Aesop opened its first store in Mainland China in Shanghai last month.
Over the past few weeks there have been increasing reports in the global media that Natura is looking to sell Aesop.
The Brazilian giant initially explored the idea of an IPO (initial public offering) for Aesop, but has shifted its strategy.
Instead, the multinational is working with two US banking giants – Bank of America Corp and Morgan Stanley – to sell off a minority stake in Aesop, according to a report in Bloomberg.
Rumoured buyers ready to take a tilt include CVC Capital Partners, the leading global equity titan with more than US$133 billion in assets under management, and beauty majors such as L’Occitane and Shiseido.
Aesop’s sales year-to-date have been instrumental in off-setting slumps in other brands, notably The Body Shop. Net revenues jumped 21.3 per cent in Q3 alone and all regions except Europe posted double digit growth.
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