June’s top news stories

Unilever to acquire 75% stake in Italian personal care and wellbeing brand

Unilever entered an agreement to acquire a 75% stake in Italian personal care and wellbeing brand, Equilibra.

Established in 1987, Equilibra offers a range of skincare and haircare products, as well as nutritional supplements in Italy.

The company’s brands are made using plant-based ingredients such as aloe, karite, argan and almond.

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Ariana Grande’s new perfume to launch in US and Canada

Ariana Grande’s new perfume Ariana Grande CLOUD is set to launch at Ulta Beauty in the US and Shoppers Drug Mart in Canada.

Created in partnership with Luxe Brands, the fragrance will feature lavender blossom, juicy pear and bergamot scents, as well as crème de coconut, praline and vanilla orchid.

The fragrance is presented in a white cloud-shaped bottle.

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Laline opened new fragrance boutique in Canada

Israel-based bath, body and lifestyle brand Laline opened a new fragrance boutique in Canada at CF Sherway Gardens in Toronto, Ontario.

Laline marketing vice-president Lital Frankel said: “Our new stores in Canada will be tailored after Laline’s unique design concept that offers a complete in-store pampering experience for customers.

“From our airy, open-concept and dreamy store design, completely outfitted with a bathtub for the complete customer ambience, to our unique product range with a variety of fragrances, textures and ingredients, the Canadian consumers are in for a new and exciting experience.”

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Lunata Hair to sell wireless rechargeable hair styler online

Lunata Hair announced it will sell its wireless rechargeable hair styler online as part of its strategy to boost its position in the beauty market.

The Wireless Rechargeable Touch-up Iron/Styler will be sold online for $150. It will feature Samsung Lithium-ion batteries that last for up to 45 minutes at the highest heat setting, which ranges from 200°F (93°C) to 400°F (204°C).

Due to its sleek design and wireless capabilities, the straighteners can be carried in a handbag and used on-the-go.

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Fermented ingredients maker Amyris extended production contract with ADL

US-based producer of fermented ingredients Amyris extended its production contract with Antibióticos de León (ADL).

Under the contract, Amyris will work collaboratively with ADL to offer additional manufacturing capability to its partners.

Amyris president and CEO John Melo said: “It’s great to be able to rely on ADL to respond quickly, just as we did when we took an active ingredient in skincare from development to commercial scale in record time.”

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Avon to develop new digital sales tools to enhance customer experience

Beauty company Avon Products plans is set to design new digital sales tools to improve communication between its representatives and its customers.

Avon’s new digital sales tools are planned to help provide customers with the latest trends, through a strong network of six million beauty micro-entrepreneurs.

Avon’s global digital platforms and experienced team has developed a fully digitised, mobile-enabled shoppable brochure to allow company representatives to easily and effectively connect with customers.

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Tarte Cosmetics launched cruelty-free skincare products inspired by Japan

Tarte Cosmetics launched its new Awake brand, which features cruelty-free skincare products.

The company formulated the line by combining its knowledge of high-performance natural ingredients with traditional Japanese skincare formulations.

Awake is produced in collaboration with its parent company KOSÉ, and features antioxidants and plant-based ingredients that are designed to improve complexion.

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Chando and Maysu promoted by Jala Group and Alibaba’s Tmall.com

China-based cosmetics producer Jala Group partnered with online retailer Alibaba’s Tmall.com to promote its beauty brands Chando and Maysu at pop-up stores in Taiwan, Singapore and Australia.

Through the partnership, Jala Group aims to reach more customers for Chando and Maysu.

The pop-up stores will showcase products such as the Chando World Cup water mask, which is designed to appeal to football fans that are currently celebrating the FIFA World Cup.

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Casino and L’Oréal to launch new beauty and wellbeing stores

Through its Franprix banner, French supermarket chain Casino collaborated with cosmetics group L’Oréal France to launch new beauty and wellbeing stores in Paris.

Dubbed ‘le drugstore parisien’, the new beauty and wellbeing stores are expected to offer fully innovative shopping experiences to customers.

Casino Group chairman Jean-Charles Naouri said: “Innovation is central to Casino’s activities. ‘le drugstore parisien’ is yet another example of our constant drive to innovate, which runs deep within the Casino Group.”

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Emami acquired stake in US-based personal care business Loli Beauty

Dubai-based healthcare products manufacturer Emami International acquired a 7.54% stake in US-based personal care business Loli Beauty.

The company invested around $565,000 in the acquisition, subscribing to 12,28,261 Series Seed Prime Preferred Stock (SSPPS).

Established in 2014, Loli Beauty offers an assortment of natural and organic personal care products that utilise a blend-it-yourself (BIY) concept. It has products under various categories, including skin, hair and body care products produced using food-grade ingredients.