Avon has confirmed that they are in discussions with the Brazilian cosmetics group. The Body Shop owner is said to getting ready to buy Avon for more than $2bn

Brazilian Natura Cosmeticos has announced this week that they are preparing to close on an all-stock deal with Avon, the popular 133-year-old brand. Natura, which already owns The Body Shop and Aesop, is Brazil’s top business in cosmetics, perfumes and toiletries, they recently stated in a press release: “The parties are currently… negotiating final contractual terms of the Transaction.”

Estimates say that deal values of Avon could be worth more than $2bn at the moment. Moreover, Avon has also confirmed the talks in a statement on Wednesday saying that “there can be no assurance any transaction will result from these discussions,” and it declined to comment any further.

Avon has been an independent brand for 133 years now, it was the brand that first popularized the door-to-door cosmetic sales model in the mid-1990s, however, due to the fact that consumers are moving to online, and that the company has been struggling to modernize its global business, their sales have continued to fall in the last years.

Moreover, back in 2012, the company turned down an offer from rival Coty for $10 billion. While later, in 2015, Avon was booted out of the blue chip S&P 500 because its market value was too small, ending then a half of century run on the index. In 2016, the company said it was moving its headquarters from New York to the UK “over time” while cutting 2,500 jobs worldwide as part of a turnaround plan. And at the same time, Avon sold its US operations to investment fund Cerberus.