THE Body Shop has hired administrators putting all of its 199 stores at risk of closing.
Administrators said it will “consider all options” to find a way forward” for the iconic chain.
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It comes just days after reports emerged that The Body Shop was set to call in administrators and begin the insolvency process.
The Body Shop will continue to trade through stores and online during the administration process.
The process only affects the UK business, with international franchises not impacted.
So far, chain bosses have not revealed what will happen to all 199 shops and staff.
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Who was Body Shop founder Anita Roddick?
Dame Anita Roddick, born October 23, 1942, was a British businesswoman, human rights activist and environmental campaigner.
Throughout her lifetime, Anita was best known as the founder of the Body Shop – a cosmetics company producing and retailing natural beauty products.
Anita opened her first Body Shop in Brighton back in 1976.
The brand first started as a small shop providing quality skincare products in refilled bottles, with the belief that the business could be a force for good.
Following this, the Body Shop went on to become a global retail business serving over 30 million customers worldwide.
As a keen campaigner, Anita was involved in activism for environmental and social issues, such as involvement with Greenpeace and The Big Issue.
In addition to this, in 1990, the late entrepreneur founded Children on the Edge – a charitable organisation which helps disadvantaged children in Eastern Europe, Africa and Asia.
In 2007 Anita, who also worked alongside her husband Gordan, sold the company to L’Oréal, but still played an active role in the business.
French firm L’Oreal paid £625million for the company, providing Anita and her husband Gordon with more than £100million for their 18 per cent share in the business.
In September 2007, Dame Anita Roddick passed away at 64 from a brain haemorrhage after being admitted to St Richard’s Hospital, Chichester, West Sussex.
Her husband Gordon, and her two daughters, Sam and Justine, were at her side.
Prior to her passing, Anita had revealed that she was diagnosed with Hepatitis C in 2004.
The late founder’s illness was first discovered during a routine blood test for a life insurance policy.
She had lived with the illness for more than 30 years before it was discovered – by which time she was suffering from cirrhosis of the liver.
In 2008, a year after her passing, Anita’s will revealed that she had given away all of her £51million to charity and the rest to tax.
The retailer was founded in 1976 by Anita Roddick and her husband Gordon as one of the first companies to focus on ethically produced cosmetics and skincare products.
It comes only weeks after new owners, European private equity firm Aurelius, took control of the business.
Aurelius, which specialises in buying and turning around troubled firms, secured a £207million deal in November to buy The Body Shop from Brazilian cosmetics giant Natura & Co.
It only took control of operations officially on January 1.
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The Body Shop, like many other high street retailers, has experienced financial struggles amid a challenging backdrop for shoppers.
Brick and mortar shops have been hit hard due to shopping habits turning more to online retail.
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Numerous high street brands have collapsed into administration in the last 12 months. including major discounter Wilko.
But it has since returned to the high street under The Range’s ownership, and Wilko branded items are being stocked in The Range stores.
Both M&Co and Joules are among the well-known brands which went bust in 2022.
Paperchase then collapsed into administration at the end of January last year and all 106 stores later closed for good.
Here is the full list of The Body Shop stores in the UK:
- 374 Oxford Street, London
- 66 Oxford Street, London
- Ashford
- Ashford Outlet
- Aylesbury
- Banbury
- Barnstaple
- Basildon
- Basilton
- Basingstoke
- Bath
- Battersea
- Bedford
- Beverley
- Bexleyheath
- Birmingham Bullring
- Birmingham New Street
- Blackburn
- Blackpool
- Bluewater
- Bluewater, Greenhithe
- Bolton Market Place
- Bournemouth Commercial Road
- Bracknell Lexicon
- Bradford Broadway
- Braintree Outlet
- Brent Cross Shopping Centre
- Bridgend Outet
- Brighton
- Bristol Cabot Circus
- Bristol Queens Road
- Brixton
- Broughton Park
- Bury
- Bury St Edmunds
- Caledonia Park Outlet
- Camarthen
- Camberley
- Cambridge
- Cambridge Station
- Cannock Outlet
- Cardiff St Davids
- Carlisle
- Castleford Outlet
- Chelmsford
- Cheltenham
- Cheshire Oaks Outlet
- Chester Foregate Street
- Chesterfield
- Chichester
- Chippenham
- Cirencester
- Clarks Village Outlet, Somerset
- Colchester
- Commercial Arcade, St Peter Port, Gurnsey
- Coventry
- Crawley County Mall
- Cribbs Causeway
- Dalton Park Outlet, Seaham
- Derby Intu
- Didcot
- Doncaster Lakeside Outlet
- Dudley
- Dundee
- Dunfermline
- Durham
- Ealing
- East Kilbride
- East Midlands Outlet
- Eastbourne
- Edinburgh Gyle
- Edinburgh St James Quarter
- Edinburgh Waverley Market
- Enfield
- Epsom
- Exeter
- Fareham
- Farnborough
- Fleetwood Outlet
- Foyleside, Derry
- Glasgow Braehead
- Glasgow Fort
- Glasgow Silverburn
- Glasgow St Enoch
- Glasgow Station
- Gloucester
- Grimsby
- Guildford High Street
- Gunwharf Outlet, Portsmouth
- Halifax
- Harlow
- Harrogate
- Harrow
- Hastings
- Hatfield Outlet
- Hempstead Valley
- Hereford Commercial Street
- High Wycombe
- Horsham
- Hounslow Treaty Centre
- Hove
- Huddersfield
- Ilford
- Isle of Wight
- Islington
- Kendal
- Kings Lynn
- Kings Street, St Helier, Jersey
- Kingston-Upon-Thames
- Lancaster
- Leamington Spa
- Leeds Briggate
- Leeds White Rose
- Leicester High Cross
- Lichfield
- Lincoln Waterside
- Liverpool One
- Liverpool Street Station
- Livingston Outlet
- London Bridge
- Loughborough
- Luton
- Macclesfield
- Maidstone
- Manchester Arndale
- Manchester Royal Exchange
- Meadowhall High Street
- MediaCity UK, Manchester
- Middlesborough
- Milton Keynes
- Morpeth
- Newcastle Eldon Square
- Newton Abbott
- Northampton
- Norwich
- Nottingham Bridlesmith Gate
- Nuneaton
- Oldham
- One New Change Shopping Centre, London
- Oxford Westgate
- Perth
- Peterborough Queensgate
- Petty Curry, Cambridge
- Platinum Mall, Gateshead
- Plymouth
- Poole
- Portsmouth
- Preson
- Preston
- Reading
- Regent Street, London
- Romford
- Rushen Lakes
- Sailsbury
- Sheffield
- Shrewsbury
- Solihull
- Southampton
- Southend
- Spalding Outlet
- St Albans
- Stafford
- Staines
- Standstead Airside
- Stockport
- Stratford Upon Avon
- Sunderland
- Surrey Quays Shopping Centre
- Sutton
- Swansea
- Swindon Outlet
- Talke Hanley Outlet, Stoke-on-rent
- Taunton
- Telford
- Thurrock
- Trafford Park
- Trowbridge
- Truro
- Tunbridge Wells
- Uxbridge Market Square
- Victoria Square Shopping Centre, Belfast
- Wakefield Trinity Walk
- Walthamstow
- Warrington
- Watford
- Wembley Outlet
- Whiteley Village Shopping Centre, Fareham
- Wigan
- Wimbledon
- Winchester
- Windsor
- Woking
- Wolverhampton
- Worcester
- Worthing
- York Coppergate
- York Outlet
Meanwhile, The Sun has put together a handy guide to all the retailers shutting shops in February including Boots and Costa.
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