Kim Kardashian West sells stake in beauty brand for US$200M

In this Nov. 3, 2018, file photo, Kim Kardashian West attends the 2018 LACMA Art+Film Gala at Los Angeles County Museum of Art in Los Angeles. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP, File)

NEW YORK — Kim Kardashian West is selling a stake in her beauty brand for US$200 million, in a deal that values the TV reality star's three-year-old business at $1 billion.

The buyer is Covergirl owner Coty Inc., which will get a 20 per cent stake in KKW Beauty. Coty seems to be enamoured with the Kardashians: Last year, it bought a 51 per cent stake in the makeup line started by Kardashian West's younger sister, Kylie Jenner.

“Kim is a true modern day global icon,” said Coty CEO Peter Harf, which is similar to what he said about Jenner in November.

Kardashian West, who stars on the long-running reality TV show “Keeping Up with the Kardashians,” founded KKW Beauty in 2017 and tapped into her hundreds of millions of social media followers to sell lip gloss, body foundation and perfume.

The 39-year-old will still promote KKW Beauty online and will help create new products.

Coty plans to expand the brand into more countries around the world and possibly into other categories, like skin creams and shampoos. It also hopes that the buzzy brand can help boost sales and connect with younger shoppers who spend a lot of time on social media.

Coty's brands, including Max Factor makeup and Sally Hansen nail polish, can't compete with KKW Beauty's reach. Max Factor, for example, has 585,000 Instagram followers. KKW Beauty has 4.4 million.

Coty said Monday that it expects the deal to close next year. Shares of New York-based Coty rose 10% to $4.06 in morning trading.

It's been a busy summer for Kardashian West's family. On Friday, husband Kanye West announced a deal to design fashions for the Gap under his Yeezy brand.