UK high street chain set for mass closures saved with 50 shops reopening

Bodycare plans to reopen stores following last month's annoucement that the company fell into administration. The health and beauty chain has been saved by the former Body Shop CEO, and will be reopening UK stores next year.

An investment group led by Charles Denton will be taking control of Bodycare's brand and intellectual property, and as part of the deal 30 to 50 shops will be relaunched during the first stage. It has also been reported that several hundred employees will be brought back on.

All of the nearly 150 UK Bodycare stores closed when it fell into administration on September 5, and resulted in a loss of about 444 jobs.

At the time Mr Holloway said: "We understand this has been a difficult period and so we want to further express out sincere thanks to Bodycare's staff who, since day one of the administration, have maintained the strong standards of presentation and customer service that Bodycare was renowned for.

"We will continue to explore options for the company's assets, including the Bodycare brand, and will provide further updates in due course."

Now as part of the new plan, the team will work with landlords, suppliers and former staff memembers to support a responsible and cost-disciplined reset of the company, which is set to re-establish Bodycare as a provider of affordable personal care and beauty products, reports Retail Gazette.

The company is known for selling products from popular brands including L'Oreal, Nivea, and Aveeno.

Mr Denton said: "Bodycare is much-loved and trusted - it matters deeply to the communities it serves. We now have the mandate to bring stores and jobs back by transforming Bodycare's rich legacy into modern, scalable and profitable business."

Nick Holloway, interpath managing director and joint administrator, said: "We are pleased to hand Bodycare to an experience new owner with a clear plan to restart operations. We wish the business every success in the future."

The beauty chain was birthed in 1970 from a Lancashire market stall by Graham and Margaret Blackledge but since 2021 it was under the ownership of Baaj Capital.