Finally, L’Oréal’s gamble in buying up The Body Shop has paid off with a £40m dividend for the French beauty giant. Recent numbers show that The Body Shop recently upped profits to more than £51m, up 3.7% while turnover climbed a less impressive 2.7% to £431.7m. But the dividend news is a bumper pay out for the French cosmetics company who bought the West Sussex-based business from Anita Roddick in 2006 for £625m.
Last year The Body Shop unveiled out a new look, restressing its ethical credentials, plus its Body Shop Pulse Boutique. But this new look was the third revival in the brand, battling previously falling sales (like-for-like sales plummeted 7.5% in the fourth quarter of 2009). The partnership was thought a poor fit for some time; many analysts wondered about the profit profile of The Body Shop, in contrast to L’Oréal’s mainstream business.
Meanwhile it’s thought that if L’Oréal attempts to buy out of Nestlé’s own 30% L’Oréal stake, the company has first refusal Nestlé decides to sell.