True Botanicals Said to Be Mulling Deal Options
True Botanicals has been evaluating its deal options, according to industry sources.
The San Francisco, California-based natural skin care brand has been working with investment bank Moelis & Company to gauge buyer interest, sources said, noting that the brand is projecting sales of around $50 million for 2022.
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A spokeswoman for True Botanicals denied it was in market: “We’re not in market and we’re focused on growing the company right now.”
Moelis & Company did not respond to a request for comment.
The brand was founded by former Levi’s executive Hillary Peterson, who began searching for natural beauty products after being diagnosed with thyroid cancer at age 32. After not having much luck finding any, she decided to create her own, launching True Botanicals as a direct-to-consumer brand back in 2014. The brand works with celebrity spokespeople, including Olivia Wilde and Laura Dern.
Earlier this year, Peterson told Beauty Inc in an interview that the company grew 70 percent in 2021 and is on track to deliver “equally impressive growth” for this year, putting that success down to a number of factors, from supercharged product development to shifting consumer attitudes.
“The consumer interest is caught up to everything that we stand for, and what we hear from consumers in our ratings and reviews is that we’re their most trusted beauty brand. They trust us and they trust that our products are going to do what we say they’re going to do. That trust is our biggest differentiator,” said the company’s new chief marketing officer Rebecca Boston, formerly of Fenty Beauty and Google, in an interview.
As the company grows, it has been launching new categories and products, including an eye cream, a hair oil and a retinol alternative called the Phyto Retinol Vitamin A Booster. In addition to all this, it is gearing up to unveil its first sunscreen, followed by an Everyday Skin Tint.
At the same time, True Botanicals is expanding into more brick-and-mortar, launching in Credo Beauty earlier this year, in addition to existing partnerships with Nordstrom and the Detox Market. “We’re dipping our toes in and seeing amazing results at retail. Consumers want a place to touch and feel the product,” Peterson said in the Beauty Inc interview in July. “We’ll continue to be a primarily direct-to-consumer brand, with a strong complement of retail partnerships.”
