French cosmetics group L’Oreal SA has agreed to acquire Newport Beach-based Urban Decay Cosmetics LLC on undisclosed terms.
Industry analysts estimate the deal at about $350 million.
Urban Decay, a specialty cosmetics maker, had about $130 million in revenue in the past year, according to recent reports.
The latest deal is the fourth time Urban Decay has been sold since its launch in 1996. It was first acquired by LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA in 2000 and sold two years later to Falic Group, a duty-free stores operator in Miami.
Newton, Mass.-based private equity firm Castanea Partners bought Urban Decay in 2009.
L’Oreal is the world’s largest beauty products maker, with annual sales of about $26 billion.
The company expects the Urban Decay brand to “beautifully complement L’Oreal’s Luxe portfolio of iconic brands,” according to Nicolas Hieronimus, president of L’Oreal Luxe, a segment of the company which includes brands such as Lancôme, Yves Saint Laurent and Giorgio Armani.
Urban Decay is what L’Oreal “needed to fully satisfy young women in search of playful colors and inspiration in selective distribution at an accessible price point,” Hieronimus said.
