L’Occitane International's CEO and largest shareholder Reinold Geiger is reportedly looking to buy out the US$4.2bn company.
Geiger, who owns 72.72% of the company is considering taking the company private by buying out the brand owner’s minority shareholders, according to a report by Bloomberg.
He may also seek to list the beauty retailer, which owns Elemis and Sol de Janeiro, on the European stock market if successful.
The news comes after L’Occitane reported a strong start to the 2024 financial year, which saw shares leap by over 9% in early trading on 26 July.
Sales increased by 20.2% to €502.2m during the three months ended 30 June 2023, which was supported by an “outstanding” performance from Sol de Janeiro.
The Brazilian skin care brand has been consistently driving growth for L’Occitane since its acquisition in 2021.
In Q1 2024 the brand saw sales rocket by a record 171% to €113m, led by strong sales of its core product range and new launches including its Fragrance Mists, released in May.
L’Occitane has also benefited from China’s economic recovery following the Covid-19 pandemic, with L’Occitane en Provence recording sales of 4.4% in the region.
In the UK and the US sales also increased by 27.9% and 19.9% respectively, driven by a boost in online sales.
“It is pleasing to kick off the new financial year with double-digit growth that is being led by our newer brands, Elemis and Sol de Janeiro, who jointly contributed nearly a third of our sales this quarter in line with our multi-brand strategy,” said André Hoffmann, Vice Chairman and CEO of of L’Occitane, at the time.
The positive first quarter comes after a challenging period for L’Occitane, which saw profits slip by 23% in 2023 as it grappled with the divestiture of its Russian arm.
Resulting share losses from associates in the country, as well as the Impairments from two underperforming brands, Melvita and LimeLife, also contributed to reduced profits.
The business’ sales performance fared better last year, however, increasing by 19.8% to €2.1bn in the face of surging global inflation and the ongoing cost of living crisis.
