Business: The "Quieter" Personal Care Company

Compared to traditional names like Estée Lauder or younger incubators like Kendo, Natura & Co. is not your average beauty conglomerate. Devoted to sustainable and ethical business practices since its founding in 1969 — long before it was trendy — the company has also taken a slow and steady approach to its acquisitions, even amidst the recent M&A tear in the industry.

Although it first launched with Brazil’s top-selling beauty and personal care brand, Natura, it’s the company’s two other brands — The Body Shop and Aesop — that Americans are likely to be most familiar with. Natura purchased the former from L’Oréal in July of last year for roughly $1.2 billion, in a bid to ramp up its international presence. (The Body Shop has stores in 70 countries.) It acquired the Australia-born Aesop, known for its hip, minimalist aesthetic, in 2014.

Taken together, the brands operate in 70 countries, have 18,000 employees and 3,200 stores and are worth $6 billion. While significant, that’s still smaller than its competitors like L’Oréal Group (worth $23.9 billion) and Estée Lauder Companies ($12 billion).