LONDON – The Body Shop is returning to Brighton nearly 50 years after the company opened its first shop in the English coastal town.
The Body Shop will relocate its head office to Brighton, and described the move as “the beginning of a significant cultural reset” under new ownership. Most recently, head office functions were based out of two separate locations, in Littlehampton, West Sussex, and London.
“Returning to Brighton reinforces the values upon which we were built. It’s a city that celebrates diversity and creativity, oozing irreverence and new ways of thinking stimulated by a vibrant youth culture,” said Charles Denton, The Body Shop’s new chief executive officer.
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The new head office will be located near the University of Brighton at the Plus x Innovation hub, which houses creative businesses that have a “combined mission to drive positive change in the world,” according to The Body Shop.
In addition to office space, the site has a prototyping workshop, and a fully equipped photography and podcast studio.
The company opened its first store in Brighton in 1976, breaking the mold and selling clean, environmentally and animal-friendly bath and beauty products.
Today there are 113 Body Shop stores in the U.K., all of which are owned by the company. Outside the U.K. there are more than 1,900 stores in 75 countries, some of which are franchises.
As reported, The Body Shop was purchased out of administration this summer by a consortium led by Auréa, which describes itself as an investment platform focused on beauty, wellness and longevity.
Auréa is led by Mike Jatania, former owner of the Lornamead personal care and cosmetics group, Paul Raphael and Andrew Vagenas.
Its purchase capped years of turmoil that saw The Body Shop pass from owner to owner following the death of its founder Anita Roddick in 2007.
L’Oréal purchased the company from the Roddicks in 2006, and sold it in 2017 to Natura & Co. at a valuation of $1.1 billion. While Natura & Co. had good intentions, it also had organizational and profitability worries, and didn’t really do much with the once-revolutionary British brand.
Just five years later, in November 2023, Natura would go on to make a fateful decision, selling The Body Shop to Aurelius for an enterprise value of $254 million, roughly one-quarter of its original purchase price.
Aurelius placed The Body Shop into administration earlier this year, claiming it could not turn the business around fast enough given weak trading over the 2023 holiday season and the cost-of-living crisis in the U.K. Auréa is now working toward rebuilding the brand, and priming it for future growth.