Forma Brands to Be Bought by Secured Lenders

Forma Brands, LLC (Los Angeles), a “builder of beauty brands” and parent company of Morphe, has unveiled plans to be acquired by its secured lenders and file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Those moves come a week after Morphe shuttered its stores in the U.S.

The proposed deal with its lenders “is expected to significantly strengthen Forma Brands’ financial position and provide additional support for the execution of its long-term growth strategy, which will focus largely on the company’s global wholesale and e-commerce operations,” said Forma, whose brands are Morphe, Morphe 2 and Lipstick Queen. The company has received a commitment for about $33 million in debtor-in-possession financing from the investor group, which includes Jefferies Finance LLC (together with Jefferies Finance LLC, funds managed by Cerberus Capital Management LP) and FB Intermediate Holdings LLC.

The Chapter 11 filing, meantime, is designed to speed the sale process, the company said.

The above announcements come on the heels of Forma’s Morphe brand announcing it is shuttering its 19 U.S. stores. The brand also said its stores outside the country will remain open. (That consists of nine stores in Europe and two Australia.)

That news came via a Jan. 5 Tweet, in which the company also said the brand’s customers in the U.S. can continue to shop Morphe online and at select retailers in the U.S, including Target and Ulta.