Unilever is planning to sell a portfolio of its American and European non-core beauty brands in a bid to dispose of its assets.
According to people close to the matter, the personal care conglomerate is working with Credit Suisse on the brands’ transaction, which have combined annual sales of US$600m.
The informants said there has been no confirmation of when the sale will take place.
Unilever’s beauty portfolio includes Dove, Axe, Alberto Balsam and Rexona.
Meanwhile, Hourglass, Ren Skincare, Murad and Dermalogica are part of the group’s Prestige category and are not expected to be up for sale.
The beauty owner made history at the end of 2020 by trading as one entity for the first time since the split of its UK and Dutch businesses.
The company has kept its listings on the Amsterdam, London and New York stock exchanges, but will no longer operate a headquarters from the Netherlands.
This received firm backing from its British and Dutch shareholders with more than 99% investors voting in favour of the decision.
At the time, Unilever said the move would make its business model more agile and would carry significant benefits, including speeding up the process of buying and selling-off brands.
Cosmetics Business has reached out to Unilever for comment.
