Weil Gotshal & Manges and Goodwin Procter are advising on French cosmetic giant L’Oréal’s acquisition of US and UK haircare brand Color Wow.
Weil is advising L’Oréal on the deal, while Goodwin is guiding Color Wow. The acquisition will allow L’Oréal to tap into rapid growth in premium hair products and strengthens its professional products portfolio. Color Wow makes products for frizz control and curly hair. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The Weil team is being led by M&A co-head Michael Lubowitz and includes M&A partners Naomi Munz and Sarah Flaherty and counsel Ariel Fliman. Also supporting is technology and IP transactions partner Dennis Adams, US privacy and cybersecurity head Olivia Greer, privacy and cybersecurity partner Barry Fishley and counsel Chloe Kite.
Competition advice is being provided by US antitrust co-head Brianne Kucerik, antitrust partner Nafees Saeed and counsels Michael Naughton and Annagiulia Zanazzo, while tax advice is being provided by partners Noah Beck and Jenny Doak and counsel Ellie Marques.
Other partners on the deal include Matthew Morton (environmental); Paul Wessel (executive compensation and benefits); John O’Loughlin, Timothy Welch and Shawn Cooley (regulatory transactions); Evert Christensen (securities litigation); Rebecca Sivitz (employment); and Jessie Chiang (banking and finance).
Meanwhile, the US and UK Goodwin team included M&A partners Robert Masella, Daniel Lang, Margaret Hickey, Andrew Harrow and Maria Dragun; tax partners Janet Andolina and Dulcie Daly; antitrust partners Arman Oruc and Simone Waterbury; IP partner Steven Argentieri and executive compensation partners Malhar Naik and Anna Humphrey.
Support was also provided by real estate partner Nathan Brodeur; risk management and insurance partner Ai Tajima; employment partners Edward Holzwanger and Alex Fisher; private equity and debt finance partner Kevin Grumberg; litigation partners Joanne Gray and Adam Slutsky; and data privacy partner Omer Tene.
Earlier this year, L’Oréal said it was targeting more innovation and growth in premium hair care products, which it sells both online and in salons. Haircare was L’Oréal’s second-fastest-growing category last year after fragrances, driven by new launches for specific hair types and conditions.
L’Oréal’s professional products division president Omar Jajeri commented: “This acquisition will give us an increased foothold in haircare and in the styling category. Convinced of its strong potential, our ambition is to make Color Wow a powerful brand worldwide.”
Color Wow CEO Gail Federici added: “Becoming part of the world’s number one beauty company will set the stage for Color Wow’s continued success and help drive our innovation to new heights.”
Federici founded Color Wow in 2013. The company offers a unique range of products that include ‘XL Bombshell Volumizer’ and ‘Dream Coat’, and are distributed in salons and through e-commerce platforms.
Goodwin previously represented the Federici family in its sale of the John Frieda Companies.
In June, L’Oréal was guided by A&O Shearman in its estimated €1bn acquisition of a majority stake in British skincare brand Mediak8 from UK private equity firm Inflexion.
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