Procter & Gamble (P&G) has acquired prestige skincare brand First Aid Beauty for a reported $250 million. The move marks the third P&G acquisition of a specialty brand for everyday use in the last year (the others being New Zealand prestige skincare line Snowberry and Native deodorant). The acquisition also establishes the conglomerate as a formidable player in the M&A game after an eight-year hiatus while strategically tapping into millennial consumer preferences.
Lilli Gordon founded First Aid Beauty (FAB) in 2009 to deliver prestige-level, solution-based skin care for those with sensitive skin at an affordable price. Free of artificial colorants and fragrance, parabens, alcohol, lanolin, phthalates, sulfates, petrolatum and mineral oil, the brand is a favorite among millennial consumers. In keeping with its new acquisition strategy, P&G will allow FAB to continue operating independently with Gordon at the helm as CEO, reporting to Markus Strobel, president of P&G’s global skin and personal-care business. The brand is expected to gain a wider consumer base by expanding its efforts globally with the help of P&G.
