What administration means for The Body Shop’s stores and jobs
The Body Shop has entered administration, putting more than 2,000 jobs in the UK at risk.
It comes after the health and wellness company was bought over by private equity firm Aurelius for £207m less than three months ago.
Restructuring firm FRP, which also handled the administrations of firms such as Debenhams and Peacocks, has been tasked with saving the company and finding a way for the business to continue operating.
The Body Shop has more than 200 outlets across the UK.
What is The Body Shop?
The Body Shop was started by the late Dame Anita Roddick in 1976 in her hometown of Brighton.
The shop quickly became a household name. It carried a range of body, face, hair and home products, while also being one of the UK’s first brands to pioneer ethical trading.
In March 2006, The Body Shop agreed to a £652.3m takeover by L’Oréal, which led to customer boycotts due to the corporation’s alleged links to animal testing.
In 2017, L’Oréal sold The Body Shop to Brazilian cosmetics company Natura in a deal worth £880m.
In November 2023, after six years of owning the company, Natura sold The Body Shop to Aurelius following a drop in sales.
Experts claim the brand has failed to evolve in an environment in which many of The Body Shop’s competitors also advertise their brands as being sustainable and ethical.
What will happen to jobs and stores across the UK?
Following another poor season of sales over the Christmas trading period, Aurelius confirmed that it had appointed the accounting firm FRP Advisory to oversee the company’s collapse into administration.
In a statement, it said: “Today, the directors of The Body Shop International Limited have appointed Tony Wright, Geoff Rowley, and Alastair Massey of business advisory firm FRP as joint administrators of the company, which operates The Body Shop’s UK business.
“Taking this approach provides the stability, flexibility, and security to find the best means of securing the future of The Body Shop and revitalising this iconic British brand. The Joint Administrators will now consider all options to find a way forward for the business and will update creditors and employees in due course.”
While it remains unknown how exactly FRP plans to save the brand, analysts say some shops could potentially be closed to save money on rising rents on high streets. This could put more than 2,000 jobs at risk across the UK.
It is not yet known if the brand will disappear from the high street completely, and experts predict the store will continue to have a presence online.
