The dealmaker behind Aurelius’s acquisition of The Body Shop has exited the private equity firm.
Peter Wood, who was UK managing director of the investment firm, has left the business, The Telegraph reported.
His resignation comes as The Body Shop was placed into administration this week, just three months after Aurelius’ £207m acquisition of the ethical beauty retailer.
It is thought that after the deal completed in January, Aurelius found The Body Shop’s finances to be in a much worse state than expected, sparking questions over what went wrong during the due diligence process.
Wood, who joined Aurelius in January 2018, said on LinkedIn when The Body Shop deal was first unveiled that he was excited “to bring the company back to its former glory”.
The German private equity firm is facing criticism over the deal, which saw it become top creditor to The Body Shop before its insolvency.
Aurelius appointed FRP as administrators of the retailer this week to “accelerate restructuring” at its UK business.
Subscribe to Retail Gazette for free
Sign up here to get the latest news straight into your inbox each morning
Store closures and job losses are expected across The Body Shop business, with the private equity firm thought to be in pole position to buy back the retailer’s assets in a process known as a pre-pack administration.
It is understood Aurelius sees value in The Body Shop’s brand and could even run the company as an online business.
The investment firm took a similar approach at LloydsPharmacy, which it also owns. The private equity firm sold off the pharmacies branches over the past year, and filed for voluntary liquidation last month as it continues to run the brand online.
Click here to sign up to Retail Gazette‘s free daily email newsletter
