The Aveda Corp. in Blaine will sell its famed Aveda Institute Minneapolis and a sister operation in New York to a Louisiana company that owns a third of the Aveda-branded beauty schools.
Beauty Basics Inc., a subsidiary of Aveda distributor Neill Corp., is expected to close on the deal in April, Aveda officials confirmed Thursday. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, including if it will include real estate or how many employees will be affected.
Neill Corp. already owns 15 of 64 Aveda-branded beauty schools, which are mainly in the southern U.S. and run by Beauty Basics.
The Minneapolis and New York schools were the last two institutes owned by Aveda, Dillon said.
"The transition of the Minneapolis and New York Institutes will provide all employees and students greater opportunity by providing the operational infrastructure to help move them into their next stage of growth," she said. Beauty Basics "will maintain the high standards of Aveda, while offering additional support and resources and continuing to deliver high quality talent to the network and industry."
Neill officials did not respond to requests for comment.
Aveda was founded in Minneapolis in 1978 by the late Austrian-born hair stylist Horst Rechelbacher as a firm that specialized in natural-ingredient hair and beauty products. He also started Aveda schools to teach student stylists the latest techniques in beauty and haircuts.
Rechelbacher in 1997 sold his Aveda enterprise to Estée Lauder for an estimated $300 million. Aveda still manufactures its hair and beauty products from its former headquarters and factory in Blaine. That operation is not part of the Neill deal.
The Aveda Institute schools span the United States from California to Maine, including the one in northeast Minneapolis.
"The Aveda Institute Minneapolis will continue to operate as the flagship school," Dillon said.
The sale of the schools follows recent leadership changes at Aveda in Blaine.
In mid-2017, Aveda brand President Dominique Conseil announced plans to retire.
Estée Lauder has selected former L'Oreal executive Barbara De Laere to succeed Conseil. She was named Aveda senior vice president and global general manager.
Dee DePass • 612-673-7725
