The new owners of The Body Shop have called in insolvency administrators just weeks after it bought the chain in a £207 million deal.
The chain, founded by the late Dame Anita Roddick who passed away in 2007, was sold by Brazilian cosmetics chain Natura & Co to Aurelius Group in November in a £207 million deal, which saw the investment group take on the chain’s 250 British stores.
Aurelius is now reported to be preparing to appoint FRP Advisory to handle the insolvency process of the company’s UK operations, Sky News reports.
An insider told Sky that the move would likely result in a significant number of The Body Shop’s British stores to close, though were quick to stress that it was premature to speculate on exact numbers.
They added that the insolvency of its UK arm would not impact the operation of its stores in the rest of the world.
Last week, it was revealed that Aurelius handed over much of its Europe and Asia enterprises to an unnamed ‘international family office’ as part of its turnaround strategy for the long-troubled health retailer, which directly employs around 10,000 people across the world.
And just yesterday, it was revealed that The Body Shop’s former owners Natura wrote to Aurelius to find out why former employees haven’t yet received bonuses worth £2million and £3 million that were promised as part of their severance.
RetailWeek reported that 20 former Body Shop employees are collectively owed the sum of money that they have still not been paid.
More to follow.