The Body Shop
Rated: Great
Price: $
Location: UK
Quick verdict
The Body Shop is the original ethical beauty brand (a pioneer that campaigned against animal testing 35 years before it became mainstream, invented community trade sourcing, and proved that values-driven business could work at global scale. But the brand's financial history is a cautionary tale: sold from Roddick to L'Oréal ($1.3B, 2006) to Natura ($1.1B, 2017) to Aurelius ($257M, 2023), then into administration just three months later, with all US stores closing (Chapter 7 bankruptcy), 85 UK stores shuttering, and Swedish/German operations collapsing, Rescued in September 2024 by Auréa Group's Mike Jatania, the brand is now profitable again (£2M profit on £28M sales in the first 3 months), returning to the US via e-commerce and Amazon in October 2025, and operating 113 UK stores. The ethical credentials) 100% vegan (Vegan Society certified), Leaping Bunny cruelty-free, Community Trade program, remain strong, but the brand's environmental and labour credentials need rebuilding alongside the business.
Key info
- Headquarters
- Brighton, UK
- Founded
- 1976
- Product categories
- Beauty
- Price range
- $
- Key certifications
- B Corp (certified 2019, status uncertain post-administration), Leaping Bunny (Cruelty Free International), The Vegan Society (100% vegan since Jan 2024), RSPO (palm oil), Community Trade program
The Body Shop sustainability rating
Our ratings are based on a scale from 1 (We Avoid) to 5 (Excellent). How we rate
Rating breakdown
100% vegan formulations certified by The Vegan Society across 1,000+ products (first global beauty brand to achieve this). Some organic ingredients used, but no fully certified organic products. Community Trade program sources ingredients from 25+ countries, paying fair prices to smallholder farmers and artisan suppliers. All palm oil is RSPO certified. However, there is no aggregate breakdown of ingredients used, no biodiversity protection evidence, and only "some lower-impact ingredients."
Labour practices are rated poorly despite the brand's ethical heritage. Key gaps include: no disclosure of where all final production occurs, no evidence of diversity/inclusion in most of the supply chain, auditing of only "some" suppliers without specifying what percentage, and a Code of Conduct that covers ILO principles but lacks verification. The Community Trade program is the labour highlight, sourcing from economically vulnerable communities with above-market-rate payments, but this covers ingredient sourcing, not final product manufacturing.
There is no evidence of GHG emissions reduction targets, no meaningful water reduction actions, no biodiversity protection in most of the supply chain, and only "some" lower-impact ingredients. The refill program (Return.Recycle.Repeat) was a genuine circularity innovation but its status post-administration is unclear. Pre-administration, the brand had set environmental targets, but the financial collapse disrupted all sustainability reporting. No published impact report from Auréa-era ownership yet.
The multiple ownership changes (four owners in 8 years, including administration) have severely disrupted transparency. Pre-administration sustainability reports are no longer current. The Auréa ownership has focused on operational restructuring rather than sustainability reporting. The Community Trade program is well-documented, but broader supply chain transparency is sparse. B Corp certification may have lapsed; current status is uncertain.
Body butters at £5–£18, shower gels at £5–£10, skincare at £8–£25, fragrance at £10–£30, accessible pricing for cruelty-free, vegan-certified personal care. The Community Trade ingredients (shea butter from Ghana, tea tree from Kenya) provide genuine ethical sourcing stories. Product quality is generally well-regarded, with hero products like the Shea Body Butter, Tea Tree range, and White Musk having decades-long followings.
What they do well
- Animal welfare leadership: first beauty retailer to campaign against animal testing (1989); Leaping Bunny certified; first global beauty brand with 100% Vegan Society-certified formulations across 1,000+ products (January 2024), a genuine, verified, world-first achievement
- Community Trade program: 48 years of sourcing ingredients directly from economically vulnerable communities in 25+ countries; provides stable income, above-market prices, and community development funds; covers shea butter (Ghana), tea tree (Kenya), Brazil nut oil (Peru), and dozens more
- Pioneer of ethical retail: Anita Roddick's 1976 vision that "business can be a force for good" predates B Corp, ESG, and CSR by decades; invented the refill station concept; helped ban animal testing in the EU; campaigned on domestic violence, HIV/AIDS, climate change
- Affordable ethical beauty: maintains mass-market pricing despite ethical sourcing commitments, products are accessible to mainstream consumers, not just sustainability enthusiasts
Room for improvement
- Sustainability reporting has essentially paused. No current impact report from Auréa-era ownership. Real transparency gaps need addressing through published targets, emissions data, and supply chain disclosure.
- B Corp status is uncertain, certified in 2019, but three ownership changes and administration likely disrupted the certification process. Publicly confirming whether B Corp status has been maintained, lapsed, or is being renewed would resolve significant consumer confusion.
- Weak labour practices despite ethical heritage. Given the brand's ethical sourcing heritage, the poor labour performance is a notable gap. Publishing factory locations, audit results, and living wage verification for final product manufacturing (not just Community Trade ingredient sourcing) is essential.
About The Body Shop
Anita Roddick opened the first Body Shop in Brighton, England, in 1976, selling naturally-inspired skincare in refillable containers. Her philosophy (that cosmetics shouldn't harm animals, exploit workers, or damage the environment) was radical in an industry built on exactly those practices. By the mid-1980s, she was partnering with Greenpeace on Save the Whale campaigns and building a Community Trade program that paid fair prices to marginalised producers worldwide. The Body Shop went public in 1984 and expanded to 3,000+ stores in 70+ countries.
The ownership saga is one of sustainable retail's most cautionary tales. L'Oréal, then actively engaged in animal testing, acquired The Body Shop for $1.3 billion in 2006, sparking outrage from loyal customers and Roddick herself (who donated her proceeds to charity and died the following year). L'Oréal sold to Brazilian beauty conglomerate Natura &Co for $1.1 billion in 2017, which struggled to integrate the brand. Natura sold to German private equity firm Aurelius for a drastically reduced $257 million in November 2023. Just three months later, in February 2024, Aurelius placed The Body Shop into administration. The collapse was rapid: all 50 US stores closed (Chapter 7 bankruptcy, March 2024); 85 of 198 UK stores shut; Canada entered bankruptcy with 33 of 105 stores closing; Sweden, Germany, and France operations collapsed.
The rescue came in September 2024 when Auréa Group, led by British-Ugandan cosmetics tycoon Mike Jatania and former UBS banker Paul Raphael, acquired all Body Shop International assets. Charles Denton (ex-Molton Brown CEO) was initially appointed CEO; Jatania himself took over as CEO in July 2025. The business reported a £2M profit on £28M revenue in its first 100 days under Auréa, and the US relaunch began in October 2025 via e-commerce and Amazon.
The ethical foundations remain. The 100% vegan certification (January 2024) and Leaping Bunny cruelty-free status survived the financial turmoil. The Community Trade program, which sources shea butter from Tungteiya Women's Association in Ghana, tea tree oil from small-scale Kenyan farmers, and dozens of other ingredients from marginalised communities, continues. But sustainability reporting has essentially paused during the crisis, no current environmental targets, no published emissions data, no updated supply chain disclosure. For Ecothes readers, The Body Shop presents a unique profile: a brand with unmatched ethical heritage and genuine, verified animal welfare credentials, but one whose environmental and labour transparency has been severely degraded by a decade of mismanagement and multiple ownership changes. If Jatania's Auréa can stabilise the business and rebuild sustainability reporting, The Body Shop could re-emerge as the ethical beauty leader it once was.
Product highlights
Shea Body Butter
Community Trade shea butter from Ghana; 96-hour moisture; 100% vegan
£16 (~$20)
The brand's hero product; Community Trade shea supports 600+ women in Tamale, Ghana; decades-long bestseller
Tea Tree Skin Clearing Facial Wash
Community Trade tea tree oil from Kenya; for blemish-prone skin
£10 (~$13)
Tea Tree range is the brand's top-selling skincare line; ingredients support Kenyan farmers
Camomile Sumptuous Cleansing Butter
Community Trade camomile from Norfolk, UK; melts away makeup
£14 (~$18)
Cult favourite; demonstrates Community Trade can work domestically, not just in developing countries
White Musk Eau de Toilette
Synthetic (cruelty-free) musk; the original ethical fragrance from 1981
£20–£30 (~$25–$38)
Historical significance: first mainstream fragrance to use cruelty-free synthetic musk instead of animal-derived musk
