Henkel has signed a deal with Berlin-based Invincible Brands Holding to acquire a 75% stake in a business comprised of three fast-growing DTC brands: HelloBody, Banana Beauty, and Mermaid + Me.
WHO: Invincible Brands is a platform creating direct-to-consumer brands that pioneered innovative and data-driven social commerce and performance marketing in Europe. It was founded in November 2015 in Berlin by Bjoern Keune and Gennadi Tschernow. Invincible Brands has a highly differentiated approach to marketing and a fast product innovation process leveraging deep consumer insights from millions of weekly client and influencer interactions as well as its 250 employees across all brands. The companies brand portfolio consists of beauty brands HelloBody, Banana Beauty, Mermaid + Me and nutrition company Natural Mojo.
Capital D is a next-generation private equity fund manager focused on disruptive mid-market businesses across Europe. Capital D invests at the intersection of macro, technological, and behavioral trends, in businesses that will be the winners of the disruption economy. Capital D adds purpose and agility to traditional investment lenses and believes companies with those characteristics are better equipped to succeed. Capital D understands “what’s next” through an ecosystem comprising experts in digital, innovation, and sustainability, which creates unique investment opportunities.
Founded in 1876, Henkel operates worldwide with leading innovations, brands, and technologies in three business areas: laundry and home care, adhesive technologies, and beauty. Henkel operates globally with a well-balanced and diversified portfolio. In 2018, Henkel reported sales of around 20 billion euros and adjusted operating profit of around 3.5 billion euros. Henkel employs around 53,000 people globally.
WHY: This transaction will allow Henkel to significantly expand its D2C go-to-market footprint in beauty and personal care and add strong digital capabilities in areas such as performance marketing, analytics, and fast innovation.
IN THEIR OWN WORDS: “As part of our strategic framework for purposeful growth, we pursue value-adding acquisitions to strengthen our businesses. This agreement is a proof point of how we consistently implement our strategy. It is also in line with our objective to strengthen our competitive edge in the area of digitalization by expanding our direct-to-consumer activities,” said Henkel CEO Carsten Knobel.
“With this acquisition, we will strengthen our portfolio with fast-growing premium brands in attractive categories. Through 1:1 interactions with consumers we will gain valuable insights that will help us to create meaningful innovations for the entire retail business,” said Jens-Martin Schwärzler, Executive Vice President responsible for Henkel’s Beauty Care business.
“I would like to thank our entire team at Invincible Brands, together with capital D, for executing a phenomenal growth plan over the past two years. With Henkel, there is now an exciting opportunity to continue building on that. The combination of our direct-to-consumer and social media marketing skills with Henkel’s R&D, product knowledge, and global footprint provides a winning formula. I am very much looking forward to working with the team at Henkel,” said Bjoern Keune, co-founder of Invincible Brands.
Stephan Lobmeyr, co-founder of capital D, added: “Two years ago we identified the disruptive nature and strength of the business model of Invincible Brands, a pioneer social media marketing and first-class brand incubator. We have supported Bjoern, Gennadi and the team to grow and conquer this nascent market and are really pleased that Henkel’s investment validates the strengths of the brands and the concept and that we will continue to be part of the business alongside Henkel.”
DETAILS:
