Today's Transactions:
L’Oreal Purchases Urban Decay
The target produces makeup based on “beauty with an edge”
Makeup and skincare company L’Oreal (FP: OR) will purchase beauty brand Urban Decay from private equity firm Castanea Partners for an undisclosed amount.
Urban Decay, based in Newport Beach, Calif., is a makeup brand built on the concept of “beauty with an edge.” The brand started when Sandy Lerner, the cofounder of Cisco Systems (Nasdaq: CSCO), teamed up with businesswoman Wende Zomnir, to create a line with more experimental color. Color names for its original products released in 1996 included roach, smog, rust, oil slick and acid rain.
The brand is sold in luxury retailers such as Ulta and Sephora, as well as online. It had sales of $130 million for the fiscal year ended June 2012.
Clichy, France-based L’Oreal owns 27 brands, including Lancome, Garnier, Essie Cosmetics, Kiehl’s and Ralph Lauren Fragrances.
Castanea is a consumer-focused private equity firm based in Newton, Mass. that typically invests between $20 million and $75 million in equity into companies. Its portfolio companies include Drybar, Donald J. Pliner and Health Resources.
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