November 22, 2024

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[THE INVESTOR] French beauty giant L’Oreal announced on May 3 that it will be acquiring the entire stake in Korea’s budget fashion and cosmetics brand Style Nanda.

“Style Nanda is perfectly positioned to nourish the growing appetite for makeup of millennials in Korea, China and beyond,” L’Oreal Consumer Products Division President Alexis Perakis-Valat said in a statement.

CEO and founder of Style Nanda Kim So-hee, who owns the entire stake in the firm, also welcomed the deal saying, “Grounded on L’Oreal’s solid support and global platform, we believe Style Nanda’s footprint can expand internationally.”

Kim will stay on as the chief creative director even after the deal, which is to be completed by end-June. L’Oreal Korea spokesperson Han Su-youn, however, declined to disclose the deal price.

The latest development between L’Oreal and Style Nanda largely came as a surprise in the industry. Sources originally predicted that L’Oreal will acquire 70 percent stake in Style Nanda for around 400 billion won (US$ 371.43 million).

Style Nanda, which has more than 400 employees, was launched in 2005. The Korean firm started as a fashion brand but more recently it is focusing on cosmetics business. In 2017, almost 70 percent of the total sales worth around 164.1 billion won came from its budget cosmetics brand 3CE, one of the most popular beauty brands in China. The company has also expanded its business to countries including Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand.

By Song Seung-hyun (ssh@heraldcorp.com)