L'Occitane owner plans to take company private with Blackstone funding

L’Occitane International SA owner Reinold Geiger is reportedly nearing a deal with Blackstone Inc. to take the group private, potentially ending its 14-year run on Hong Kong’s stock exchange.

US-based private equity firm Blackstone is looking to provide debt financing for the buyout, according to Bloomberg, with a formal announcement anticipated to be made in the coming days.

Trading of L’Occitane was suspended in Hong Kong on Tuesday morning, pending an announcement related to a takeover deal.

Sources, however, cautioned that while deliberations are at an advanced stage, they could still be delayed or even fall apart.

Reinold Geiger

The news comes after Geiger, who owns more than 70% of the company, revealed last August that he was considering potential buyout deals that would value the group at no less than 26 Hong Kong dollars a share.

L'Occitane was listed in Hong Kong via an initial public offering in 2010, and was said to be one of the first Western companies to sell its primary shares in the Asian financial hub at the time.

The group is a renowned global retail conglomerate specialising in natural cosmetics and wellbeing products. Present in over 90 countries, it owns various brands, including L'Occitane en Provence, Melvita and Erborian.

It has strengthened its portfolio over recent years by acquiring Elemis in a $900 million deal in 2019 and taking majority stakes in Sol de Janeiro in 2021 and Grown Alchemist in 2022.

However, two years after joining L'Occitane Group, skincare brand Grown Alchemist last week confirmed that it was being taken private in a bid to accelerate growth.

Andre Hoffmann, the Vice-Chairman and former CEO of L'Occitane International SA, acquired a controlling majority stake, while Grown Alchemist CEO Anna Teal was named a minority shareholder.