Over 2,200 jobs are at risk just under three months after the acquisition of The Body Shop by the German company Aurelius.

Aurelius, the German company that acquired The Body Shop for £207 million in November, has announced its inability to revitalise the business following poor trading during the Christmas and New Year period.

The company, which has a branch in Ealing, has appointed the accounting firm FRP Advisory as the administrator, sparking concerns about the future of the business founded by the late environmental and human rights advocate Anita Roddick in 1976.

The Body Shop operates more than 200 stores in the UK, with one branch in Ealing Broadway.

The Body Shop in Ealing Broadway (credit: Cesar Medina).

In a statement, the administrators said: "Today (13 February), the directors of The Body Shop International Limited have appointed Tony Wright, Geoff Rowley, and Alastair Massey of business advisory firm FRP as Joint Administrators of the company, which operates The Body Shop's UK business."

Aurelius added that it had "faced an extended period of financial challenges under past owners, coinciding with a difficult trading environment for the wider retail sector" and they would "consider all options to find a way forward for the business and will update creditors and employees in due course".

The Body Shop, Ealing Broadway has been approached for comment.

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