Virgin Vie At Home, the UK’s largest Party Plan Company selling Cosmetics and Skincare products, has been bought out by a management team led by Ros Simmons and Ratan Daryani for an undisclosed sum.
Virgin Group decided to sell the business, to focus on its core travel, telecommunications, media, financial services, health and wellness businesses. It selected the Virgin Vie At Home management team as the preferred bidder after a competitive process, on the strength of its robust and comprehensive business plan. Grant Thornton and Bond Pearce advised the management team on the deal.
Simmons and Daryani have a wealth of expertise and experience within the Cosmetics industry and have both worked for Virgin Vie At Home for a number of years. Their strong belief in the Direct Sales model means that the new management team is well positioned to harness the full potential of the brand and business.
Virgin Vie At Home was launched by Virgin in 1996, with Simmons and Daryani as founding Directors, and has established itself as the leading Party Plan Company in the UK, with over 10,000 Consultants. The new management team will continue to focus on and enhance the Direct Sales channel, which is the core of the business.
Ros Simmons, CEO of VIE at home said: “Our strategy is to maximize our Direct Sales Party Plan business by widening the potential audience of our award-winning, high quality Vie products. With Retail High Street sales set to continue to struggle over the next year, we will be moving away from High Street sales to a comprehensive Direct to Consumer model, involving E-commerce, and direct mail.”
She added: “Our aim is to provide our Self Employed Consultants with everything they need to earn a good income, by providing them with new leads and Customers to their own businesses. This highly innovative approach, which we believe represents the changing face of Direct Sales, makes this form of selling an acceptable, and welcomed, way of earning a living by selling high quality Cosmetics and Skincare.
With the uncertain economic climate set to continue for the foreseeable future, people are looking for additional income streams. VIE at home plans to recruit a record number of new Consultants in January 2009.”
The newly enhanced commission structure created for Consultants and Managers has been a resounding success. The focus will now move to recruitment and training of new Consultants and Managers and a review of the existing product range, with new product categories added, to enhance the core Cosmetics and Skin Care ranges.
The management is looking to expand internationally and has identified potential markets to move into. This will be achieved through established partners, joint ventures or by setting up subsidiaries.
VIE at home develops its own products with some of the world’s leading manufacturers in Italy, Switzerland and the USA. The new management team at Vie At Home, together with its own in-house Design team and Customer Service departments, will ensure it maintains its renowned levels of service and product quality and enhances its position in the eyes of its Consultants and Customers, both in the UK and internationally.
About Ros Simmons, CEO
Ros Simmons has been CEO of Virgin Vie At Home since January 2002 and has been key in developing the business into the UK’s leading Cosmetics Party Plan business. Ros was a founding Director, of the Virgin Cosmetics Company in 1996 (as it was known at the time, before it re-branded as Virgin Vie At Home in 2006). She was initially responsible for the development and marketing of the multi-award winning Cosmetic and Skin Care product ranges. Ros is also chiefly responsible for the expansion into the development of the highly acclaimed Jewellery and Homeware product categories.
Ros joined The Virgin Cosmetics Company from The Body Shop. During the seven years with the company, she held the position of Brand Manager with the global responsibility for Colourings, the internationally awarded and recognised, Colour Cosmetics division of The Body Shop.
About Ratan Daryani, Chairman
Ratan Daryani has worked in the Cosmetics industry for over 20 years and was recently featured in the list of the Top 20 most important figures in the natural beauty industry (Natural Beauty Yearbook 2008). In 1996, he was a founder Director of The Virgin Cosmetics Company.
Ratan has several business interests including being Non-Executive Chairman of Aquasource Algae Group PLC a Plus markets listed Direct Selling business selling nutrition and natural Skin Care primarily in Eastern Europe. In 2007, Ratan launched his own natural men’s Shave & Skincare range, Flint Edge, which is currently available in prestigious retailers nationwide including Fortnum & Mason, Fenwick and Whole Foods. Prior to Virgin Cosmetics Ratan spent seven years as a senior executive at The Body Shop.
For further information please contact:
Yvonne Clay. Email: yvonne.clay@vieathome.com