Beauty is a big part of many peoples’ lives but, with the slow decline of the high street and COVID-19, there have been many beauty brands that have gone bust. We’re going to tell you the ones that have, and some might surprise you!
Beauty products are an integral part of many peoples’ lives, so you would think that a brand like this would never be in financial trouble. That said, not every company can avoid facing bankruptcy and having to seek the help of aninsolvency lawyer. The same can be said for a fair few beauty brands.
The COVID-19 pandemic has, unfortunately, added an additional layer to the problem. It has affected many businesses across the globe, from throwing many into bankruptcy to leaving many on the brink.
Considering we love beauty over here on What Laura Loves, we wanted to remind you of some beloved brands we can now wave goodbye to. So, to learn about some of the beauty brands that have gone bust over the last couple of years, keep reading….
The Beauty Brands That Have Gone Bust
There are countless beauty brands across the world. Some are more popular and famous than others, for example, Charlotte Tilbury, which are especially well-known for their beautiful and high-quality lipsticks. Then Benefit Cosmetics, Huda Beauty, MAC Cosmetics, and Anastasia Beverly Hills are just some of the many more we can name.
Whilst we may think many are doing extremely well and making lots of money, you might be surprised to find manyothers are struggling, and sometimes going bust. Here, we name four surprising brands that have not stood the test of time…
BECCA Cosmetics
The popular Australian cosmetics company, BECCA Cosmetics, was one of the first casualties of the COVID-19 pandemic despite being well-known and thought to be very successful. Founded by Rebecca Morrice Williams back in 2001, BECCA Cosmetics had been trading for 20 years before closing its doors for the final time in 2021.
BECCA Cosmetics had been sold across several luxury retailers, including Bergdorf Goodman. In 2013, the brand started selling products in Sephora. Then, in 2015, they collaborated with Youtuber and beauty influencer Jaclyn Hill, with their The Shimmering Skin Perfector highlighter in Champagne Pop.
Despite the brand’s popularity, they released an Instagram statement explaining the negative effect the pandemic had had on the brand, alongside other challenges. With this, they announced it was not possible for the brand to remain running.
Napoleon Perdis
The makeup brand, Napoleon Perdis, was established in Sydney, Australia, and opened in 1995. Known as a luxury beauty store, it is a very popular brand, with 56 stores across the globe.
After several months of failing to sell the brand, in January 2019, Napoleon Perdis went into voluntary administrationafter footfall in retail stores was reducing and business running costs were increasing. When news broke of Napoleon Perdis going into administration, the brand’s popularity was shown when their best-selling primer went through panic buying.
The Solvency and accounting firm Worrells was appointed as the voluntary administrator. It was reported that the business was in $22 million worth of debt with money owed creditors,and had a business loss of $16 million in the US alone.
Despite going into voluntary administration, the brand bounced back from being bust and went on to be purchased by KUBA investments in April 2019. Since then, it has continued to be a well-loved brand by many, from professional makeup artists to influencers. It seems as if there is no chance of going bust again in the near future.
L’Occitane
The USA version of the French beauty brand L’Occitane filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in January 2021. The reason for the bankruptcy filing was due to the $15 millionrent arrears the business was in, fuelled by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Whilst the brand filed for bankruptcy in January, in August 2021 it re-emerged after being granted approval for its restructuring plan. This included reducing the number of stores they have across the US from 166 to 133.
Kiko USA
While Kiko is originally an Italian makeup brand, a subsidiary went to the USA. However, in January 2018, the brand filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy after footfall fell in their stores.
The brand made plans to try and restructure the business, with the aim to close 24 of its 29 stores in the USA, leaving stores in popular tourist destinations such as New York and Miami. Although the USA subsidiary faced bankruptcy, the rest of the business globally confirmed it was not facing financial issues and continues to focus on business growth.
Do Beauty Brands Bounce Back?
What we can establish from this article is that owning a beauty brand can be hard. It’s often the case that many popular brands are developed through influencers that have the backing from their supporting fans. But, where a beauty brand is opened by a non-influencer, it can be hard to find their way in the beauty world, especially with so many other brands to compete against.
Despite this, it seems many of these beauty brands that went bust managed to bounce back and continue providing their loyal customers with their iconic favourite products and, of course, many new products to test and fall in love with.
What beauty brand going bust surprised you most? Let us know in the comment box below.
