High street giants Next and Marks & Spencer have made early expressions of interest in bidding for The Body Shop as an auction for the stricken cosmetics chain gets underway.
The sale process marks the second time that The Body Shop has been on the block within the past year.
The chain, founded in 1976 by Anita Roddick, was bought last November by the private equity firm Aurelius, only to collapse, controversially, in February. Aurelius is also preparing to table a bid to regain ownership of The Body Shop.
Both Next and M&S have in recent years begun selling outside brands, particularly on their websites. M&S bought Jaeger in 2021 after it collapsed under its former owners and now stocks dozens of other third-party brands online including White Stuff and FatFace.
Next, led by chief executive Lord (Simon) Wolfson, has become a prolific buyer of struggling brands, including Joules, Made.com, FatFace and JoJo Maman Bébé. It has been approached by several private equity and venture capital firms over a possible joint bid for The Body Shop.
Advertisement
The sale is being run by administrators from FRP Advisory, which wrote to creditors last week to say it was “encouraged” by the early interest shown in The Body Shop.
FRP has presided over the closure of 82 Body Shop stores and the loss of 800 jobs. It said that after its restructuring, which has left the chain trading from 116 stores in the UK, The Body Shop had a viable future.
The firm has received expressions of interest from more than 70 potential suitors, although it is likely that many will not, ultimately, be considered suitable buyers.
In its early years, The Body Shop forged a reputation as a trailblazer for a more ethical form of capitalism, but it struggled to retain a point of difference when rivals began making similar environmental claims.
Last year, Brazilian beauty giant Natura sold the retailer to Aurelius in a deal that valued it at £207 million including debt. However, the private equity firm paid just £3.5 million upfront.
Advertisement
Following The Body Shop’s collapse, FRP had intended to restructure it through a company voluntary arrangement (CVA), which would have enabled Aurelius to maintain control. However, the plan was in effect blocked by Natura, still one of the chain’s big suppliers, amid simmering tensions with Aurelius.
During its short stint as owner, Aurelius shifted The Body Shop’s brand and intellectual property assets into a separate entity, but it has since given assurances to FRP that they will remain available to the company.
A source close to Next acknowledged that a deal for The Body Shop was possible but sought to play down the prospect. An M&S source also cautioned that its interest in The Body Shop would not necessarily translate into a bid. Both companies declined to comment.
