)
ONE of Australia and New Zealand's largest online haircare and beauty stores Ry.com.au has been acquired by UK retail giant The Hut Group.
Founded on the Gold Coast by entrepreneurs Brad Carr (pictured right) and James Patten (pictured left), the Ry.com.au brand has continued to go from strength to strength and now offers more than 250 premium skincare, haircare and cosmetic brands through its popular e-commerce platform.
Carr says Ry.com.au has always been an ambitious business "dominating the world one shampoo bottle at a time", so the duo needed to be certain that any acquiring company would maintain its core values.
"James and I built the business 12 years ago from nothing, so it has been a great passion for us," says Carr.
"We wanted to make sure the buyer was a good fit which would grow the business to the next level, and The Hut Group fit that idea perfectly."
According to Carr, the acquisition was first mooted when The Hut Group and Ry.com.au were introduced via a mutual opportunity, when last year both companies were separately vying for another Sydney-based beauty brand called SkincareStore.com.au.
"We were both looking at buying that business down in Sydney at the same time, so the discussion started there," says Carr.
"The Hut Group large retailers in the US and the UK, and they had plans to move into the Australian market."
Carr says the future of the Ry.com.au brand is bright and he expects this acquisition will maintain, if not significantly boost, the company's current 30-50 per cent year-on-year growth margin.
While the founding duo will not continue to hold positions at Ry.com.au, Carr is excited to be moving on to new ventures, the details of which remain undisclosed for now.
Last year Carr reached the No.2 spot on the Gold Coast 40 under 40 list and is looking forward to once again being involved in the Gold Coast Young Entrepreneur Awards.
Never miss a news update, subscribe here. Follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and Twitter.
Business News Australia
)
)
)
)
)
