Lloyds Pharmacy owner Aurelius Group is in the running to buy The Body Shop.
It joins Waterstones owner Elliott Advisors and private equity firm Epiris in the running to snap up the ethical cosmetics chain, Sky News reported.
It is unclear whether Alteri Investors, which owns Bensons for Beds, remained in the process.
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The Body Shop’s owner, Brazilian cosmetics giant Natura, put the chain up for sale last month. It follows its sale of Aesop to L’Oréal for £2bn back in April.
Morgan Stanley is understood to be managing the sale process and hopes to reach a provisional agreement by the end of this month.
Natura acquired The Body Shop in 2017 from previous owner L’Oréal but has struggled to maintain its profitability.
The beauty group, which had grown rapidly in recent year through acquisitions, has posted six consecutive quarters of losses.
Executives told analysts last month that The Body Shop had weighed on the company’s bottom line as consumers shifted spending following the pandemic.
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