Topline
Beauty company Estée Lauder Cos. is in talks to buy fashion brand Tom Ford for at least $3 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported Monday, one month after Bloomberg reported the luxury label was exploring a sale.
Key Facts
The potential Tom Ford deal would be the largest acquisition yet for Estée Lauder, a publicly traded company with a market capitalization of over $96 billion that is home to popular cosmetics brands Aveda, Bobbi Brown and La Mer, according to the Journal.
Estée Lauder is interested in Tom Ford Beauty, which it has a licensing agreement with, and it could look to license the clothing brand to other companies, the Journal reported, citing unnamed sources.
Other firms may also be interested in acquiring Tom Ford, according to the Journal, which didn’t list any other potential buyers.
Sources told Bloomberg last month Tom Ford had hired Goldman Sachs to explore a possible sale.
Forbes has reached out to representatives for Estée Lauder and Tom Ford for comment.
Key Background
Tom Ford launched his eponymous fashion brand in 2005 after leaving Gucci, where he spent 10 years as the luxury line’s creative director. It’s best known for its suits and menswear collections. The brand also includes womenswear, eyewear watches and, of course, Tom Ford Beauty. Tom Ford branched out into cosmetics around this same time, after first consulting on a perfume. On its third-quarter earnings call three months ago, Estée Lauder said Tom Ford Beauty was one of a few brands with double-digit sales growth, the Journal reported.
Further Reading
Luxury Brand Tom Ford Hires Goldman Sachs to Explore Potential Sale (Bloomberg)
Estée Lauder in Talks to Buy Luxury Brand Tom Ford (Wall Street Journal)
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