Coty announced it is taking over a controlling stake in the beauty brand...

Coty announced it is taking over a controlling stake in the beauty brand founded by TV personality and social media star Kylie Jenner (Photo: © Valérie Macon / AFP)

The USD 600 million deal will give Coty "overall responsibility for the portfolio’s development, leveraging its global knowledge and capabilities in R&D, manufacturing, distribution, commercial and go-to-market expertise, as well as its deep understanding of the fragrances, cosmetics and skincare categories," according to a press release.

Global beauty influencer

It is a major milestone for Jenner, who made her entry into the beauty arena back in 2015 with the launch of what was then ‘Lip Kits by Kylie’ and was renamed Kylie Cosmetics the following year. The brand has made an estimated USD 177 million in net revenues over the past 12 months.

Named third most influential global beauty personality in a recent study from Cosmetify, Kylie Jenner counts 151 million followers on Instagram, making her one of the world’s 10 most followed personalities of the social network, together with soccer player Christiano Ronaldo, singer Ariana Grande or her older sister Kim Kardashian. Her strong presence on social networks has greatly contributed to the success of her brand.

Brand’s category expansion

The move will see Jenner and Coty work to transform the business into a "global powerhouse brand," with a focus on global expansion and entry into new beauty categories.

According to Coty, Kylie and her team will continue to lead all creative efforts in terms of product and communications initiatives, building on her unrivalled global reach capabilities through social media.

Coty will have overall responsibility for the brand’s category expansions, such as skin care, fragrance and nail products, leveraging its capabilities in R&D, manufacturing, distribution, commercial and go-to-market expertise.

This new partnership between Kylie and Coty is an exciting step in Coty’s renewed emphasis on its beauty business. Kylie is a modern-day icon, with an incredible sense of the beauty consumer, and we believe in the high potential of building a global beauty brand together,” said Peter Harf, Chairman of the Board, in a statement.

The deal came at a time when Coty has met some difficulties in integrating the assets of its recent acquisitions, including those related to the take-over of Procter & Gamble’s beauty businesses in 2015 for USD 12.5 billion. Coty recently announced its intention to refocus on its fragrances, cosmetics and skin care through the divestment of its professional beauty business and its activities in Brazil.