After Aesop, Natura mulls sale of The Body Shop

Brazilian beauty giant Natura has revealed that it’s considering a sale of The Body Shop ethical beauty business.

The news emerged in a filing linked to its sale of the multi-billion dollar upscale Aesop brand to L’Oréal. But it seems unlikely that L’Oréal will be on any list of bidders given that Natura bought The Body Shop from the French giant for around €1 billion in 2017.

The filing said that the board has authorised management to explore options for The Body Shop, including a possible sale, although there’s no guarantee that it will be divested.

The almost-50-year-old British business has been a thorn in the side of Natura lately with sales growth remaining elusive (The Body Shop’s Q1 net sales fell over 9% at constant currency) and the unit’s CEO having stepped down suddenly a few months ago.

Natura had previously denied it might sell or restructure the business.

But the sale of Aesop — albeit that’s a brand in a much stronger position — shows it is willing to exit a business when it can help progress at the wider company and the US$2.5 billion Aesop price will certainly boost its bottom line. The deal should complete during Q3.

The Body Shop employs around 10,000 people and has 3,000 stores in 70 countries. But the area of ethical and sustainable beauty in which it was once a pioneer is now very crowded and it has struggled to stand out in recent years.