Barry M, one of Britain's last family-run makeup brands, has been bought out of administration by rival Warpaint for £1.4 million ($1.9 million).WHO: Barry M was founded in the 1980s by Barry Mero, who sold nail polish from Ridley Road Market in the heart of the East End. Inspired by the punks and New Romantics of that era, the range of colorful nail varnishes and affordable makeup has become a staple of the UK high street. The brand is stocked in around 1,300 shops across the UK, including Superdrug, Boots, Sainsbury's, and Tesco. Barry M operates a 45,000-square-foot factory in Mill Hill, employing over 100 people. Leadership of the business passed to Mero's son Dean after his death in 2014. London-listed Warpaint London is a UK-based color cosmetics business with two divisions: closeout and own brand. The larger division, own brand, consists primarily of the group’s flagship business, W7. The company acquired Retra Holdings in 2017, adding a group of owned and licensed brands, such as Technic, Body Collection, and Man’s Stuff, to the portfolio.WHY: Barry M had collapsed into administration. Lack of innovation was making it difficult to compete in today’s beauty landscape.IN THEIR OWN WORDS: Warpaint Chief Executive Sam Bazini said, "Looking ahead to the new year, we expect to see a return to organic growth across the group and also expect to be able to update the market on further significant new customer roll outs with our full year results in April. In addition, we are delighted to announce today the acquisition of the Barry M brand, which is expected to accelerate our penetration into key UK retail channels.