Brazilian watchdog gives stamp of approval to L'Oréal's deal to acquire Aēsop

Brazil's antitrust watchdog, Cade, has given its stamp of approval to the sale of Natura & Co's brand Aēsop to French cosmetics conglomerate L'Oréal.

Under the transaction, L'Oréal will acquire Aēsop for £1.81 billion ($2.525 billion). Cade's approval of the purchase is considered definitive unless an appeal is filed within the next 15 days.

Natura & Co began considering selling a minority stake in Aēsop in December 2022. An intense bidding war followed between rival beauty giants LVMH and Shiseido, but ultimately L'Oréal topped their offers.

With the transaction, Natura & Co will strengthen and deleverage its balance sheet, freeing up resources to focus on its strategic priorities, notably the integration in Latin America, as well as the further optimisation of Avon International's footprint and the improvement of The Body Shop´s business.

Nicolas Hieronimus, Chief Executive Officer of L'Oréal Group, said: "I am very excited to welcome Aēsop and its teams to the L'Oréal Group family. Aēsop is the epitome of avant-garde beauty, whose products are not only made with great care and exceptional attention to detail; they are a superb combination of urbanity, hedonism and undeniable luxury. Aēsop taps into all of today's ascending currents and L'Oréal will contribute to unleash its massive growth potential, notably in China and Travel retail."

Since becoming part of Natura &Co in 2012, Aēsop has posted huge growth. Between 2012 and 2022, gross sales increased from $28 million to $537 million. The number of stores and counters increased from 52 to 395 as Aēsop expanded its geographic footprint from 8 markets to 29.