Reinold Geiger, the chairman and executive director of L’Occitane International, is considering a move to take the French skin care company private, according to people familiar with the matter.
 
Geiger, who owns more than 70% of L’Occitane, is studying the possibility of buying out minority shareholders of the Hong Kong-listed public group. The company has a market value of $4.2 billion.
 
It remains to be seen whether Geiger will be able to secure financing for the buyout. However, if he is successful, it would be a major coup for the private equity industry.
 
A L’Occitane spokesperson declined to comment on the potential deal.

L’Occitane First Quarter Results

This reported move comes after the group released stellar growth results in the first quarter.
 
The group had a solid start to FY2024 with net sales of €502.2 million ($546.9 million) in FY2024 Q1, representing growth of 20.2% at reported rates or 24.5% at constant rates. The growth was mainly driven by the performance of Sol de Janeiro and the growth of L’Occitane en Provence with a recovering trend in China.