Beauty company Coty Inc. (COTY) is selling its Wella, Clairol, OPI, and ghd brands to investment firm KKR for $4.3 billion. The two companies have entered into a memorandum of understanding for the sale, which will spin off Wella into a standalone company.

KKR will acquire a 60% stake in Wella, with Coty holding the remaining interest in the brand. Coty will also receive about $3 billion in cash with an additional $1 billion investment from KKR. Coty will continue to own its beauty business in Brazil, the company said.

Through the sale of Coty’s Professional Beauty and Retail Hair businesses, KKR will receive two seats on the Board of Directors upon completion of the transaction.

“Today’s announcement with KKR provides an increased sense of energy and excitement for all of us at Coty,” Pierre-André Terisse, Coty COO and CFO, said in a statement. “As part of a number of steps to continue Coty’s transformation, the strategic partnership with KKR is clearly the most game-changing. We will see immediate improvement to our balance sheet and are in the final stages of finalizing a 60/40 partnership for our Professional Beauty and Retail Hair businesses.”

Coty saw its Q3 sales drop by 23% on a reported basis to $1.53 billion.

Shares of Coty stock were down 3.69% as of 10:08 a.m. EDT on Monday.

Coty Clairol
Coty has sold its Wella, OPI, Clairol, and ghd brands in a $4.3 billion deal. Clairol 'Natural Instincts' Hair Dye boxes in store shelf. The discounted price tags on the shelf's rim. Getty Images/Roberto Machado Noa/LightRocket
RELATED STORIES