The Body Shop - statistics & facts
The Body Shop is a British cosmetics company known for its brand of ethically produced cosmetics and skincare products. The company takes a strong stance against animal testing in the beauty industry and emphasizes natural ingredients. It was certified as a ‘B Corp’ in 2014, which verified its high standards towards social and environmental responsibility. The high street retailer was also the first global beauty brand to be certified 100 percent vegan in December 2023.
The United Kingdom accounted by far for the largest share of The Body Shop’s sales, generating 197 million British pounds in 2022, more than twice of the overall revenue made in Europe and the Middle East. Total worldwide revenue amounted to 408 million pounds, a faltering figure which was down by half from 2018’s results. In total, the company had 2,456 stores that year, 60 percent of them franchises, down from its peak of 3,119 stores in 2014.
This was a sign of the company’s flagging sales and impending financial straits. Up against the increasing normalization of ethical beauty consumption and other beauty brands embracing similar ideals, it seemed like The Body Shop’s unique identity was beginning to crack under pressure.
Just six years after that, the company was acquired by German private equity firm Aurelius in November 2023 for 207 million pounds – a fifth of the figure Natura had forked out for it. In a dramatic and rapid turn of events, Aurelius, which had announced its intention to “re-energize an iconic global beauty” brand, put the high street retailer into administration in February 2024.
A series of store closures and job eliminations followed. In that same month, The Body Shop announced that it would close up to half of its 198 stores in the UK. In March, the company ceased its U.S. operations, and closed dozens of locations in Canada.
Brand popularity
The Body Shop enjoyed immense popularity as a trailblazer of socially responsible consumption, a concept that was fresh when the company launched in 1976, headed by British businesswoman Anita Roddick. It has maintained its visibility into 2023, when it ranked among the top 10 most well-known health and beauty online shops in the United States, a list which also included brands such as Sephora and Bath & Body Works.The United Kingdom accounted by far for the largest share of The Body Shop’s sales, generating 197 million British pounds in 2022, more than twice of the overall revenue made in Europe and the Middle East. Total worldwide revenue amounted to 408 million pounds, a faltering figure which was down by half from 2018’s results. In total, the company had 2,456 stores that year, 60 percent of them franchises, down from its peak of 3,119 stores in 2014.
This was a sign of the company’s flagging sales and impending financial straits. Up against the increasing normalization of ethical beauty consumption and other beauty brands embracing similar ideals, it seemed like The Body Shop’s unique identity was beginning to crack under pressure.
Ownership changes and the spiral into insolvency
In 2006, The Body Shop was bought by French cosmetics giant L'Oréal for 652 million British pounds. In 2017, L'Oréal sold it to Brazilian cosmetics group Natura &Co at a price tag of 880 million pounds.Just six years after that, the company was acquired by German private equity firm Aurelius in November 2023 for 207 million pounds – a fifth of the figure Natura had forked out for it. In a dramatic and rapid turn of events, Aurelius, which had announced its intention to “re-energize an iconic global beauty” brand, put the high street retailer into administration in February 2024.
A series of store closures and job eliminations followed. In that same month, The Body Shop announced that it would close up to half of its 198 stores in the UK. In March, the company ceased its U.S. operations, and closed dozens of locations in Canada.
