Warburg taps former Revlon CEO for new beauty platform

Warburg Pincus’s consumer portfolio is getting a makeover.

The global private equity firm partnered with former Revlon Inc CEO Alan Ennis to combine three beauty and personal-care companies under a new platform, known as Glansaol, the firm said in a Dec. 19 statement.

Warburg Pincus backed Glansaol’s acquisitions of separate color cosmetics brands Laura Geller — which closed — as well as those of skincare company Clark’s Botanicals and Julep, which are expected to close in the coming weeks. Ennis, who led Revlon from 2009 to 2013, launched Glansaol with Warburg’s backing at the end of 2015.

Glansaol spent roughly a year targeting its first platform acquisition, said Warburg Pincus Partner Annette Rodriguez, who leads the firm’s North American consumer effort. The firm also expressed interest in Procter & Gamble’s cosmetics and fragrances businesses in 2015, Reuters reported.

“We started spending time in beauty and personal care and we really liked the sector from an investment perspective,” Rodriguez told Buyouts. “We thought about consumer investing in North America; we were looking for places showing outsize growth. Beauty definitely checked that box.”

Warburg Pincus and Glansaol also plan to acquire additional premium beauty and personal care brands as bolt-on acquisitions. While exact deal terms for the new platform were not disclosed, Warburg will provide Glansaol with additional investment capital for future acquisitions.

“I think they need to be brands that are complementary to what we already have, so other types of skin care, hair care, possibly color cosmetics targeting a different segment of the market,” Rodriguez said. “I wouldn’t say it matters too much on size. We have the room to make a large significant acquisition as part of the platform, but also have room for smaller growth brands.”

The founders of Laura Geller, Julep and Clark’s Botanicals will join the leadership team at Glansaol, the statement said. Warburg Pincus expects to establish value by leveraging best practices across the platform as it expands, in supply chains, IT, product research and distribution networks.

Warburg Pincus’s consumer portfolio includes Indian women’s retailer Biba Apparels and REISS, a luxury clothing brand. In 2013, the firm sold retailer Neiman Marcus to Ares Management and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board for $6 billion.

Warburg Pincus closed its most recent flagship fund on $13.4 billion in 2015. The firm has more than $40 billion under management.

Action Item: For more information about Warburg Pincus, visit www.warburgpincus.com

A model has makeup applied backstage at the Tbilisi Fashion Week on Oct. 20, 2016.  Photo courtesy Reuters/David Mdzinarishvili 

Correction: The story previously indicated Julep acquisition had closed.