India's Reliance Retail considers bid for Revlon

India's Reliance Retail is reported to be considering a bid for US-based cosmetics giant Revlon, after the latter filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection due to high levels of debt and rising costs.

Reliance, which is owned by Indian Billionaire Mukesh Ambani, is also in the running to acquire British health & beauty retailer Boots in joint bid with US private equity house Apollo.

While the news has been widely reported, neither Reliance nor Revlon has commented.

Revlon is one of the best-known names in global cosmetics, having been founded 90 years ago by brother Charles and Joseph Revson. In 1985 it was sold to Andrews & Forbes, owned by billionaire Ron Perelman. Perelman's daughter Debra became its first female CEO in 2018.

As well as the Revlon brand it also owns other brands including Elizabeth Arden, Mitchum and Cutex along with fragrances by Christina Aguilera and Britney Spears.

It recent years it has come under fierce competition from personality and social media led brands such as Rihanna's Fenty and Kylie Jenner's Kylie Cosmetics. This coupled with mounting debt and rising supply chain costs have forced the business to seek protection through the Chapter 11 process in the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.

Speaking of the move, CEO Debra Perelman said: “The filing will allow Revlon to offer our consumers the iconic products we have delivered for decades, while providing a clearer path for our future growth.

“Consumer demand for our products remains strong – people love our brands, and we continue to have a healthy market position. But our challenging capital structure has limited our ability to navigate macro-economic issues in order to meet this demand. By addressing these complex legacy debt constraints, we expect to be able to simplify our capital structure and significantly reduce our debt, enabling us to unlock the full potential of our globally recognised brands."