Brands
JSW Paints to acquire 74.76 per cent stake in Akzo Nobel India in bold Rs 8986 crore move
MUMBAI: JSW Paints dipped its brush into the big leagues on Thursday, signing definitive agreements to acquire up to 74.76 per cent stake in Akzo Nobel India Limited (ANIL) for a maximum consideration of Rs 8986 crore. The all-cash deal, one of the sector’s most significant in recent years, marks JSW Paints’ ambitious leap toward top-tier status in India’s fast-expanding paints and coatings market.
The acquisition is contingent upon regulatory approval from the Competition Commission of India and completion of a mandatory open offer to ANIL’s public shareholders. Should all go as planned, the JSW Group’s paints arm will become a heavyweight challenger to incumbents in a market long dominated by a few legacy players.
ANIL, the Indian arm of Netherlands-based Akzo Nobel, brings with it marquee brands like Dulux, International and Sikkens, and a strong decorative and industrial paints portfolio. In return, JSW Paints, part of the $23 billion JSW Group, gains reach, muscle and a serious splash of brand equity.
JSW Paints managing director Parth Jindal said, “Paints & Coatings is one of India’s fastest growing sectors and JSW Paints is amongst the fastest growing paint companies. Akzo Nobel India is home to some of the most globally renowned brands of paints & coatings like Dulux, International and Sikkens. We are excited to welcome them to the JSW family. Together, along with the Akzo Nobel India family – employees, customers and partners – we aspire to build the paint company of the future. With the Magic of Dulux and Thoughtfulness of JSW Paints, we look forward to delighting customers and building lasting value for our stakeholders”.
Akzonobel CEO Greg Poux-Guillaume added, “This transaction is a significant milestone in the execution of our strategy. Akzonobel India has been a consistently strong performer, and we are proud of the brand and talent that have made it a success. With JSW, we are confident the business is in the hands of a long-term partner with deep local expertise and strong ambitions in the sector”.
The acquisition underscores a broader strategy by JSW Paints to cement itself as a dominant force in a market projected to clock double-digit growth, driven by rising urbanisation, housing demand, and premiumisation. It also reflects increasing consolidation in the Indian paints sector, where the battle for shelf space and mindshare has intensified.
Morgan Stanley served as exclusive financial adviser to JSW Paints, with Khaitan & Co. acting as legal counsel and Deloitte overseeing financial and tax due diligence.
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Brands
Estée Lauder to shed 10,000 jobs as new boss bets on digital shift
The cosmetics giant raises its profit outlook but stays silent on a possible merger with Spain’s Puig, as job cuts deepen and a three-year sales slump weighs on the turnaround
NEW YORK: Stéphane de La Faverie is not done cutting. Estée Lauder announced on Friday that it plans to eliminate as many as 3,000 additional jobs, taking its total redundancy programme to as many as 10,000 roles, up from a previous target of 7,000 announced a year ago. The company, which owns La Mer, The Ordinary, Tom Ford, and Aveda, employs roughly 57,000 people worldwide. The mathematics of what is now being contemplated is stark.
The fresh round of cuts is expected to generate a further $200 million in savings, bringing the total annual savings from the programme to as much as $1.2 billion before taxes. That money, De La Faverie has made clear, will be ploughed back into the turnaround.
A CEO in a hurry
De La Faverie, who took the helm in January 2025, inherited a company that had endured three consecutive years of annual sales declines. His response has been to move fast and cut deep. A significant portion of the latest redundancies reflects his push to reduce headcount at US department stores, long a cornerstone of Estée Lauder’s distribution model but now a channel in structural decline. In their place, he is accelerating the shift toward faster-growing online platforms, including Amazon.com and TikTok Shop, a pivot that is reshaping not just where Estée Lauder sells but how it thinks about its customers.
The numbers are moving in the right direction
Despite the pain, there are signs the medicine is working. Estée Lauder raised its profit outlook for the remainder of the fiscal year, guiding for adjusted earnings per share in the range of $2.35 to $2.45, above analyst estimates and a notable step up from the $2.05 to $2.25 range it had guided for in February. Organic net sales growth is expected to come in at 3 per cent, the company said, at the high end of the range it set out in February.
The share price tells a mixed story. After De La Faverie took charge, the stock surged nearly 60 per cent, buoyed by investor optimism that a longtime company insider could finally arrest the decline. But 2026 has been rougher: the shares have fallen 27 per cent this year, weighed down by disappointing February results and the overhang of unresolved merger talks with Spanish beauty giant Puig Brands SA. The company gave no additional details about those discussions on Friday, leaving the market to guess.
Silence on Puig
The proposed tie-up with Puig remains the most consequential unknown hanging over Estée Lauder. A deal with the Barcelona-based group, which owns brands including Carolina Herrera and Rabanne, would reshape the global luxury beauty landscape. But with nothing new to say and a turnaround still very much in progress, De La Faverie is asking investors to trust the process.
Three years of sales declines, 10,000 job cuts, and a merger that may or may not happen. At Estée Lauder, the overhaul has barely started.
