Murad to be bought by Unilever, just days after Dermalogica acquisition

US advanced skincare brand Murad is to be acquired by Unilever in the consumer goods giant's fourth premium skincare deal in recent months.

Unilever confirmed today (July 2) that the purchase, for an undisclosed sum, would go ahead subject to standard approvals.

Unilever announced the acquisition of Dermalogica last week, Kate Somerville Skincare in May and organic skincare brand Ren in March.

Unilever chief executive Paul Polman said in a statement, “We are delighted to welcome Murad to our portfolio of Prestige personal care brands. As an expert ‘doctor brand’, Murad offers products in a differentiated clinical and holistic wellbeing segment. It has a loyal following that gives it excellent potential for expansion, and wonderfully complements the brands recently acquired. We look forward to working with Dr Murad and his team to continue to grow the brand.”

Murad’s founder, Dr Howard Murad, added, “We’ve always looked for opportunities to reach more people with our message of inclusive health and to touch more lives with our targeted, high-performance products. With Unilever, we can broaden our reach and significantly grow our brand while remaining faithful to the founding principles of Murad. There is a very bright path ahead and I am excited to work with Unilever to share our products with the world.”

Murad had a turnover of US$115m (£73.7m) last year. The brand is the latest in a line of premium skincare acquisitions for Uniliver, which bought Dermalogica last week and also purchased Ren and Kate Somerville in recent months. 

Murad's UK subsidiary was bought out by the US head office last year in a move that will have helped prepare the wider company for this sale.