MILAN (Reuters) -The French luxury group Kering, owner of the Gucci brand, is in advanced discussions to sell its beauty division to L’Oréal for around four billion dollars, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on Saturday, citing sources familiar with the matter.
As part of this operation, L’Oréal, the world’s number one cosmetics company, would acquire the Creed perfume brand and obtain the rights to develop beauty products linked to Kering’s fashion brands, notably Bottega Veneta, Balenciaga and McQueen, specifies the American economic and financial daily.
An agreement could be announced next week, adds the daily.
Kering, controlled by the Pinault family, launched its beauty division in 2023 with the acquisition of high-end perfume brand Creed for 3.5 billion euros in cash.
Reuters could not immediately verify the information reported by the WSJ.
Kering declined to comment, while L’Oréal has not yet responded to a Reuters request for comment.
If the deal is confirmed, the sale would be a major step for Kering’s new chief executive, Luca De Meo, who officially took office in September, as he seeks to reduce the group’s debt, a subject of concern for investors.
Kering’s net debt stood at 9.5 billion euros at the end of June.
The group is struggling to revive sales of its Gucci brand, in a luxury market hit hard by a drop in consumer demand, particularly in China.
(Written by Rajveer Singh Pardesi in Bangalore and Lisa Jucca; Claude Chendjou)
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