P&G begins beauty brand sale

Published: 22-May-2015

Frédéric Fekkai is the first brand to be sold

In what appears to be the start of Procter & Gamble's beauty brand sell off, Designer Parfums and LUXE Brands have purchased hair care brand Frédérik Fekkai from the cosmetic industry giant. The news follows P&G's announcement that it was taking action to streamline its business in August 2014.

P&G previously said that it was planning to sell between 80 and 100 of its brands in a bid to focus on a smaller number of core brands. The joint venture from Designer Parfums and LUXE Brands will take effect on 30 June 2015, creating a new entity caleld Fekkai Brands. Frédérik Fekkai products are currently distributed in a number of beauty retailers as well as in Fekkai salons. Approximately 225 people are currently employed by the brand, mostly at its seven high-end salons, and are expected to transfer to the new entity.

Dilesh Mehta, CEO of Designer Parfums, said: "We are excited to be working with the extraordinary talent of Frédéric Fekkai and the Fekkai brand to optimize and further develop his brand of world class and innovative hair care products." Tony Bajaj, Founder and CEO of LUXE Brands added: "This latest addition to our portfolio expands upon our vision to extend into every area of beauty; we cannot imagine a more perfect partner than Frédéric Fekkai, the premier brand in hair care and salons."

P&G has not disclosed the value of the sale, but in 2008 its purchase of the Frédéric Fekkai brand from Catterton Partners was valued just above $400m. The sale is one of 40 brand exits currently in the works, with a total of 100 due in the coming months which could be sold individually, or as part of a package valued at $10-12bn. Last year P&G agreed a deal to sell its Zest and Camay soap brands to Unilever. Other brands expected to be sold include Wella and Clairol salon hair care products and a number of designer fragrances. It's new streamlined portfolio is expected to consist of about 65 leading brands across 10 categories.

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