Frieda to sell hair product business for £288m

The celebrity hairdresser John Frieda has agreed to sell his business to Japan's biggest home care products company for £288m.

Mr Frieda will keep his London and New York hair salons under the terms of the deal with Kao Corp, who take over the rights to all his beauty products.

He became famous in Britain through his marriage to Lulu, but is one of the most renowned hairdressers in the United States, were he opened his first salon in Manhattan. He counts Catherine Zeta Jones among his clients.

Mr Freida spent the last 10 years building his range of hair-care products such as Sheer Blonde into a multi-million pound business, which had a $230m turnover this year and has recorded 36 per cent average annual growth.

Announcing the deal yesterday, Kao said it anticipated sales of $160m for the next business year. It is the biggest ever purchase by the Japanese company. Kao, known for its boxes of Attack detergent and tubes of Biore skin cleanser, is the biggest personal care manufacturer in the Japanese market. But falling prices have made it keen to move into the US, where Mr Frieda holds a 6 per cent share in the hair-styling product market.

The deal is expected to be completed by September after it wins approval from the regulatory authorities.

Earlier this year Mr Frieda was put on probation and fined £1,800 after he attacked crew members on a flight from New York to San Diego.