Charles Denton, the former Molton Brown chief executive who leads the consortium that has agreed to buy The Body Shop said he expects the company to emerge from administration in August.
Posting on LinkedIn on Sunday, Denton said the Auréa Group, which includes British tycoon Mike Jatania and former UBS banker Paul Raphael as well as Denton and other parties, will develop a “strategic plan” that sets the business up for “long term growth”. He praised the staff’s resilience, and said he looks forward to “changing the narrative” around The Body Shop, describing it as a powerful brand that is “loved” all over the world.
The consortium agreed to buy The Body Shop out of insolvency last week.
A joint statement from FRP, the administrators, and Auréa Group that accompanied the news said that the “deal was not yet complete”, but that the “combined experience of the consortium, together with the existing management team, represents the best outcome for creditors and will ultimately ensure the long-term success of The Body Shop.”
A period of due diligence is underway, and is expected to be completed in the coming weeks. Auréa Group plans to retain all of The Body Shop’s UK stores, according to Bloomberg.
When the firm collapsed in February, it owed more than £276 million ($356 million) to creditors including landlords, suppliers and tax authorities, with its collapse triggered by a repayment of a $76 million credit facility to its previous owner, the Brazilian conglomerate Natura.
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