The future of The Body Shop has been uncertain for some time. At the end of last year, former brand owner Natura &Co made a deal to sell The Body Shop to the Aurelius Group for £207 million ($254 million). Just three weeks after the sale, the UK arm of the business filed for administration, and by February 2024, the file was made official. This contributed to over 80 store closures and 489 total job losses.

Worldwide, bankruptcy was filed in several other countries, including Germany, France, the US, and Canada, where the majority of stores were shut. Shortly after, an estimated 14% of The Body Shop's European and Asian businesses' physical and digital channels were sold to an international family office in a bid to execute a turnaround plan for the struggling business.

In early April, administrators FRP Advisory set out a plan to try to salvage the business, proposing a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA) that would see the company pay back creditors, including landlords, over a prolonged period of time. If successful, the CVA would have allowed the company to continue trading under the ownership of Aurelius. However, plans did not materialize due to conflicts over the plan's intricate details.

At the end of April, news broke that Aurelius had only paid £3.5 million ($4.47 million) upfront for The Body Shop. Reports suggested it was unlikely Natura &Co would ever receive the rest of the money due to the debts taken on when the business was sold. This led to FRP Advisory launching an auction of the business and seeking potential buyers.

Since announcing the search for buyers, a spokesperson for FRP Advisory stated that they were "encouraged by the level of interest received to date from interested parties."

Big names in the UK high street market, including Next and Marks & Spencer (M&S), are said to have shown interest in the bid to buy the brand. Since news of the sale was revealed recently, FRP has also confirmed over 70 potential buyers, although it has stated it is not likely many of these will be considered.

Next and M&S have a history of purchasing struggling brands. In February 2023, Next acquired then-in-administration fashion brand Joules in a £34 million ($43.4 million) deal and clothing company Fatface in a £115.2 million ($147. 1 million)  deal, where it now holds 97% of the business equity. M&S purchased the fashion brand Jaeger in 2021 for £6 million ($7.6 million).

"The Body Shop remains an iconic brand, and following the structural changes we have made to the business since our appointment, we consider it has a viable future," The Body Shop spokesperson continued, "This will be showcased to potential acquirers during the sale process."

A successful sale of The Body Shop would give hope that the struggling business would be able to continue its trading in a less up-and-down manner, bringing stability to the businesses, with the ambition to one day be up and running again as a thriving contender in the bustling beauty industry.