Bidders circle Charlotte Tilbury in sale that could fetch over £1bn

Published: 29-Apr-2020

Cosmetics heavyweights Unilever, Puig, L’Oréal, Estée Lauder Companies and Shiseido are said to have made bids for the beauty company, alongside private equity firms

Charlotte Tilbury, the premium skin and make-up brand, has received offers from several of the beauty industry’s major players in a deal that could fetch up to £1bn.

Unilever, Puig, L’Oréal, Estée Lauder Companies and Shiseido are said to have made bids for the company, according to Bloomberg.

Meanwhile, several private equity firms are also rumoured to have shown interest.

With discussions ongoing, it is reported the company could select a buyer by May with the help of advisers at Goldman Sachs Group and Jefferies Financial Group.

British make-up artist Charlotte Tilbury MBE launched her eponymously-named brand in 2013 and today the brand has 3.4m followers on Instagram.

Based in London, the brand now has a global presence; last year it expanded into the US with a debut store in Los Angeles.

It also entered travel retail for the first time in 2019, through a retail partnership with World Duty Free at Heathrow’s Terminal 5.

Charlotte Tilbury has faced issues with copycat brands imitating her hero products and last year the brand won a legal battle against supermarket chain Aldi, which created a £6.99 dupe of the Filmstar Bronze & Glow palette, which sells for £49.

Read Cosmetics Business’ exclusive interview with Charlotte Tilbury, here.

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