The Body Shop offloads part of its international business following Aurelius takeover

The Body Shop is selling parts of its business in Europe and Asia under the new ownership of private equity firm Aurelius.

The British retailer has signed an agreement with "an international family office to sell its business in most of mainland Europe and in parts of Asia" as it looks to deliver a "strong turnaround strategy".

The parts of The Body Shop being sold equate to approximately 14% of its external global revenue and will not impact its UK operations or its global head franchise partners, who operate at a country or territory level.

The Body Shop told TheIndustry.beauty: "This further prioritises The Body Shop’s strategically important markets and global head franchise partner relationships, which it will look for opportunities to build.

"The Body Shop will also focus on more effectively reaching customers by strengthening digital platforms, developing new sales channels, and via differentiated retail experiences.

"The announced sale is another decisive step towards delivering a strong turnaround strategy for The Body Shop, supported by the right structure. The ambition is to create a modern and dynamic beauty brand, relevant to customers and able to compete for the long term."

The move marks the latest change at The Body Shop under the new ownership of private equity firm Aurelius, which recently acquired the business from Natura & Co for £207 million.

Aurelius said it believed that, despite the challenging retail market, there is an opportunity to "re-energise" the business and enable it to take advantage of positive trends in the high-growth beauty market.

Earlier this month, Ian Bickley left his role as interim chief executive following the completion of the sale.

Whilst the decision is said to be unrelated to its recent change in ownership, the brand also decided to close its 'The Body Shop At Home' scheme. A new ambassador programme will take its place, allowing UK consultants to continue earning commission by offering people in their network offers from The Body Shop.

Founded in 1976, The Body Shop was the brainchild of responsible beauty and retail entrepreneur, the late Dame Anita Roddick. It was a pioneer of cruelty-free cosmetics and refillable packaging, decades before they became mainstream business trends.