The Body Shop is set to close 75 UK stores within the next four to six weeks, resulting in 489 staff being made redundant, according to the administrators leading the beauty retailer’s restructuring. It is said to become.
It was announced that seven stores will be closing on February 20th. After the closure, The Body Shop will continue to operate 116 stores nationwide.
“As we have previously noted, the reduction in store footprint refocuses the brand’s products, online sales channels, and wholesale strategy, while aligning the brand with its peers and helping return it to financial stability. ” management company FRP said. in a statement Thursday.
Tony Wright, joint administrator, said: “By taking swift action to right-size The Body Shop UK store portfolio, we are stabilizing the business and ensuring the long-term future of this iconic brand. “We offer the best opportunity to have a sustainable future.” That statement.
“The UK business remains in administration and we remain fully committed to exploring all options to move the business forward,” he added.
The announced changes do not affect The Body Shop’s business outside of the UK, the brand’s birthplace and one of its largest markets.
As previously reported, on February 13, The Body Shop’s new private equity owner, Mr Aurelius, placed the company into administration in the UK, with FRP’s Mr Wright, Geoff Rowley and Alastair Massey taking charge of the company. – Appointed joint administrator of the company that runs The Body Shop’s UK operations.
Administrators said at the time that The Body Shop would continue trading while seeking a buyer for all or part of the business. At that time, The Body Shop had approximately 200 stores in Japan and 2,568 employees.
Last weekend, Sky News reported that high street retailer and online giant Next had approached administrators about buying some of The Body Shop’s assets. Next, which declined to comment, regularly buys up the assets of failed businesses and revives them on its platform.
Next, based in Leicester, UK, manages Gap-branded shops in Next stores and Gap’s e-commerce business in the UK.
Next Marketplace features over 700 fashion, home, and beauty brands. The company is also a UK partner for brands such as Laura Ashley Home and Victoria’s Secret, both of which previously applied for administration in the UK.
The appointment of administrators for The Body Shop comes at a difficult time for British brands and retailers alike as they grapple with declining consumer confidence, high inflation and soaring interest rates.
The failure of the UK business is particularly significant. The Body Shop was founded by Anita Roddick in the UK in 1976 when he set the template for a sustainable brand with a ‘purpose’. Roddick is one of the earliest British entrepreneurs to demonstrate that ethics and commerce can work together, opposing animal testing and focusing on sustainability in manufacturing and supply chains.
The Body Shop’s management process is the result of a toxic combination of over-expansion and under-investment by previous owners, and intense competition in the beauty market. This is also part of a broader reorganization on Aurelius’ part.
Further restructuring took place. In early February, The Body Shop entered into a deal with an international family office to sell the majority of its operations in mainland Europe and parts of Asia. The portion of operations affected represents approximately 14 percent of The Body Shop’s business worldwide.
B Corp-certified companies operate approximately 2,800 retail stores in more than 70 countries.
Brazil-based Natura & Company sold The Body Shop to Aurelius in mid-November 2023 in a deal valuing it at £207m.
In the third quarter of 2023, The Body Shop’s sales reached BRL 829 million, or $168.6 million.