Last month, Retail Beauty reported that Natura & Co had entered into exclusive discussions with the private investor Aurelius Group for the potential sale of The Body Shop.
The sale has now been finalised, with Aurelius acquiring The Body Shop for £207 million ($396 million), significantly lower than the initially expected range of £400 million to £500 million ($763 million-$695 million).
Expressing gratitude to Natura & Co for their unwavering support, The Body Shop CEO, Ian Bickley, said he looks forward to collaborating with Aurelius to navigate and thrive in new global retail landscapes.
“We are deeply grateful to Natura & Co for their unwavering support, and I’m looking forward to working hand in hand with Aurelius as we adapt and flourish in new global retail environments, always with an eye on sustainable and profitable growth,” he stated.
Meanwhile, Tristan Nagler, Aurelius partner, expressed delight in acquiring the iconic British brand.
“We are delighted to be undertaking this acquisition of an iconic British brand, which pioneered the cruelty-free and natural ingredient movement in the health and beauty market,” he said.
Initially under L’Oréal‘s ownership from 2006, The Body Shop was purchased by Natura & Co in 2017 for €1 billion ($1.7 billion).
Founded in 1976 by Dame Anita Roddick, an environmental and human rights campaigner, The Body Shop, headquartered in London, employs around 7,000 staff across 900 company-owned stores in 20 countries.
It obtained B Corp certification in 2019. Natura, the founding company of Natura & Co, achieved B Corp status in 2014, becoming the world’s largest publicly listed company to do so.
It remains to be seen if the acquisition will have implications for The Body Shop’s B Corp status.
This sale comes hot on the heels of Natura & Co’s sale of the Australian luxury brand Aēsop to L’Oréal in a monumental deal valued at $3.7 billion (US$2.5 billion).
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