The Body Shop has a new owner: investment company Auréa has purchased the the cosmetics chain and aims to relaunch it as early as next month.
Long term plans
If all goes well, The Body Shop will be out of receivership next month, Auréa Holdings hopes. The highest bidder for the bankrupt formula turned out to be the holding company owned by Mike Jatania, one of the richest entrepreneurs in Britain, who amassed his fortune with skincare and cosmetics brands such as Molton Brown, Biolabs, Lypsyl and Harmony.
Auréa sees The Body Shop as an interesting addition to its existing portfolio: Charles Denton, ex-CEO of Molton Brown, immediately took office as the company’s new CEO. On LinkedIn, he hints at the new strategy, saying he is going for the long term and would not close any more shops.
Administrators had already closed 82 shops in the United Kingdom, ending 489 positions there as well as and 270 in the offices. The Belgian and German branches went bankrupt. What the takeover means for The Body Shop’s future in continental Europe – and especially in the Netherlands – is still unclear.
