The Body Shop to relaunch in Switzerland and Belgium under new licensee

British cosmetics retailer The Body Shop, which entered administration last year, will reportedly reopen stores in Switzerland and Belgium after German businessman Stefan Herzberg obtained the necessary licenses.

Herzberg told German publication Lebensmittelzeitung: “We will implement the first branches this year.” The entrepreneur is in “far-reaching” negotiations with Inno, a Belgian department store chain, and searching for individual retail locations for The Body Shop in Switzerland.

Herzberg has also secured licenses for The Body Shop in Germany and the Netherlands.

The Body Shop collapsed in February 2024, three months after private equity firm Aurelius had acquired it. A few months later, a new owner — Mike Jatania’s Auréa Group — bought the UK business for around £44.3 million (US$57.3 million).

In March, The Body Shop’s administrator announced that the beauty retailer would pay back only part of the money it owed after going bankrupt.

The Body Shop was founded by Anita Roddick in Brighton, UK, in 1976. The company is known for its commitment to environmental sustainability and animal ethics.