USA. Coty is set to acquire the exclusive long-term global licence rights for Burberry Beauty luxury fragrances, cosmetics and skincare.
The deal is expected to close in Q4 2017, at which point Coty will buy approximately £50 million (US$62.4 million) of inventory from Burberry. Coty will pay a cash consideration of £130 million (US$162.3 million) for the long-term exclusive global licence.
Coty said the strategic partnership combines Burberry’s British heritage of innovation, craftsmanship and design with Coty’s expertise and leadership in luxury beauty products. Under the agreement, Coty will develop, manufacture and distribute the full range of Burberry Beauty products globally.
Coty CEO Camillo Pane said: “We are proud to welcome Burberry as a strategic partner of Coty. We look forward to growing further Burberry’s luxury beauty products using Coty’s world-class expertise in developing and bringing to market beauty brands.”
Coty Luxury President Edgar Huber added: “Burberry is an iconic luxury brand. It fits perfectly with Coty Luxury’s portfolio, which includes contemporary and globally relevant prestige beauty brands. We are uniquely positioned to develop Burberry Beauty to the next level. This is another significant step in building Coty’s Luxury division.”
Burberry Chief Creative and Chief Executive Officer Christopher Bailey noted: “We are delighted to partner with Coty, a world leader in luxury fragrance and make-up. Working with a global partner of Coty’s scale and expertise will help drive the next phase of Burberry Beauty’s development and position this business for growth.”
The Burberry Beauty business will be managed within Coty’s Luxury division, which is headquartered in Paris. Coty Luxury develops, produces, markets and distributes globally a range of fashion house fragrances including Gucci, Marc Jacobs, Hugo Boss, Calvin Klein, Alexander McQueen, Bottega Veneta and Balenciaga, as well as premium cosmetics and skincare under the philosophy, Lancaster and Gucci brands.
Coty and Burberry will work in partnership to deliver best-in-class creative executions and will leverage Coty’s global capabilities in beauty strategy, innovation, supply-chain and go-to-market. Burberry beauty products will be sold in leading luxury beauty retailers globally as well as in Burberry stores and digital channels.
In FY 2015/16 Burberry Beauty posted revenue of £203 million (US$253.4 million).
