Revolution Beauty has returned to profit, with the business’ ‘Reigniting the Revolution’ strategy bolstering sales in 2024.
The beauty brand reported full-year profit before tax of £11.4m, up from the loss of £33.9m in 2023 when it reported difficulties with stock, revenue and the value of Revolution Labs.
Sales increased by 2% to £191.3m, which was partly driven by a period of “significant” product clearance activity in the first half of the year.
A strong global performance helped to offset lagging sales online and a slowdown in the US market.
“FY24 was a year of great strategic and financial progress following two challenging years,” said Revolution Beauty CEO Lauren Brindley.
“Our new Reigniting the Revolution strategy is already delivering improvements across the business, strengthening our core and providing a much firmer platform from which to grow.”
The company said its recent operational changes are designed to get the business back on track following nearly two years of legal battles and shareholder revolts.
The fast beauty retailer is focused on three core pillars to deliver “long-term profitable growth” to become a top five mass beauty player globally.
This also includes plans to hit £1bn in retail brand sales by 2030.
“As the strategy continues to take effect, we expect to see a return to growth in the second half of the year. That will put us firmly on the right trajectory to achieving our ambition of being a top five player in the mass beauty market,” Brindley added.
Revolution Beauty expects revenues to decline slightly in the first half of the new financial year, after benefiting from its stock clearance during 2023.
However, it anticipates growth to return in the second half of the year as a result of its more focused product portfolio.
“As we progress through the new financial year, I am excited about the potential of our reinvigorated pipeline of innovation and the number of opportunities to expand our retail distribution globally,” said Brindley.
The positive financial results come after a former Revolution Beauty investor Chrysalis Investments issued a draft claim of £45.2m after claiming the make-up brand deceived it.
The growth capital fund has accused Revolution Beauty of “deceit, negligent misstatement and/or misrepresentation” at the time of its company share purchase.
The firm bought a £45m stake in the affordable cosmetics company in July 2021.