Natura executive chairman Marques named group CEO as Avon deal closes

Brazilian personal care cosmetics maker Natura & Co Holding SA on Friday named Executive Chairman Roberto Marques as group chief executive officer after closing its acquisition of Avon Products Inc.

Jan Zijderveld, Avon’s Chief Executive Officer, also stepped down following the completion of the deal. He will be succeeded by Angela Cretu, a veteran of the London-headquartered cosmetics maker, who most recently served as general manager of its Central Europe division.

Cretu will report to Marques, along with the chief executives of other Natura-owned brands, Aesop and The Body Shop, the company said.

Marques joined Natura’s board four years ago and spearheaded a global expansion that included the acquisition of The Body Shop in 2017.

Natura agreed to buy Avon in 2019 through a share swap that valued the over 130-year-old company’s equity at around $2 billion.

The buyout came at a time when the door-to-door selling pioneer was struggling with falling sales amid changing consumer preferences.

Avon and Natura will have a combined 3,000 stores worldwide, annual gross revenue of over $10 billion and more than 40,000 employees, Natura said.

The Sao Paulo-based company said it expects its American depositary receipts to begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Monday.