The very first The Body Shop® store opened on 26th March 1976 in Brighton, on the south coast of England. By 1978 the first overseas franchise is a kiosk in Brussels and by 1982 new shops open at a rate of two per month.

In 1985, in its first year as a public company, The Body Shop sponsored posters for Greenpeace. A year later, it created an Environmental Projects Department of its own, while the first major campaign for The Body Shop is "Save the Whales" with Greenpeace, in 1986.

The first Community Trade product for The Body Shop was a footsie roller, produced in 1986 by a supplier in southern India. This trade in footsie rollers has evolved into the current trade with Teddy Exports in India, one of our key Community Trade suppliers.

By 1990, just one year after launching in the USA, there were 2,500 applications for a franchise, with demand for The Body Shop® products ever-growing, driven by expansion which saw the company trading in 39 countries within just fourteen years after the opening of the very first shop!

In 1990 The Body Shop Foundation was established, a charity which funds human rights and environmental protection groups.

The Big Issue paper for homeless people, which began as a The Body Shop Foundation project, was launched in 1991. By 1998 its success saw The Body Shop Foundation part-funding the launch of the The Big Issue stateside, in Los Angeles.

The New Academy of Business was established in 1995, as an initiative by Anita Roddick. This innovative management degree addressing social, environmental and moral issues is run at The University of Bath, in England.

In 1993 the Company launched an international high-profile campaign to raise awareness of the plight of the Ogoni people and their leader Ken Saro-Wiwa, persecuted for protesting against Shell and the Nigerian dictatorship over exploitation in their homeland.

The Body Shop At Home™, the direct-selling arm, was launched in the UK in 1994, Canada in 1995, Australia in 1997, and USA in 2001. It has now rolled out in 48 states in the USA and is set to grow even bigger.

The Body Shop continues to increase its environmental practices. In 2001, The Body Shop UK region and service centre head offices in Watersmead switched to Ecotricity providing them with energy from renewable sources. In addition, a number of The Body Shop® stores have now converted to green electricity while the rest of the stores are set to follow suit.

Campaign successes include the Against Animal Testing campaign. The campaign led to a UK-wide ban on animal testing on cosmetic products and ingredients in November 1998 and led to the largest ever petition (four million signatures) being delivered to the European Commission in 1996.

In 1997, The Body Shop was the first international cosmetics company to sign up to the Humane Cosmetics Standard supported by leading international animal protection groups.

In 1995 and 1997 The Body Shop Values Reports were recognised as trailblazing by United Nations Environmental Programme and SustainAbility and ranked highest in their review of International Corporate Environmental Reports.

In 1997, The Body Shop celebrated its 21st birthday with the launch of a new flagship store design, winning the prestigious Retail Week Store Design of the Year Award.

To celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1998, The Body Shop launched a joint worldwide campaign with Amnesty International to highlight the plight of human rights defenders around the world, encouraging customers to 'Make their Mark' for human rights. This successful campaign saw three million people sign up.

In 1999, The Body Shop created four new business units in the UK, Europe, the Americas and Asia, shifting its operational and management structure out to the regions.

 

2001 saw the first The Body Shop® customer reward scheme launched in the US. It became so popular it's now in key markets globally, known as Love Your Body™ customer scheme with customers rewarded by 10% off their purchases, free gifts and a birthday present, as well as other members-only benefits.

The Body Shop branches into South Africa in June 2001, via New Clicks Holdings as The Body Shop direct franchisee in South Africa. New Clicks has a strong commitment to corporate social responsibility through its New Clicks Foundation.

During 2002, The Body Shop ran a global campaign with Greenpeace International on promoting renewable energy, which culminated in the presentation of over six million customer signatures at the World Summit for Sustainable Development in Johannesburg. We further our commitment to environmental sustainability through investment in renewable energy, funding of energy efficiency projects in the developing world, and incorporating post-consumer recyclate into our packaging.

During 2003 The Body Shop launched a global campaign to help Stop Violence In The Home. This builds on almost a decade of campaigning on the issue in a number of our markets, including Canada, the USA, and West Malaysia. The campaign aims to highlight the issue, raise money to support the work of groups helping victims of violence, and ensure that customers and employees are provided with information on sources of advice and help.

Anita Roddick is appointed as a Dame of the British Empire as part of the Queen's Birthday Honours on Saturday 14th June 2003.

During 2003 The Body Shop launches in Estonia and Turkey.

In 2004 The Body Shop is the first global retailer to join the Board of the Roundtable for Sustainable Palm Oil, working with NGOs and plantations to protect tropical rainforests and improve the human rights of workers and indigenous people.

In 2005 The Body Shop joins The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics and is commended by Greenpeace and the Breastcancer Fund for our responsible chemicals policy.

During 2005 The Body Shop is awarded for achieving higher standards of animal welfare in the cosmetic category at the first annual awards of the Royal Society of Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in the UK. An independent panel of judges chose The Body Shop as winners because of our Against Animal Testing Policy.

The Body Shop comes to Jordan and Russia in 2005 with a total of 2,045 stores around the globe.

In 2006 The Body Shop turns 30 (March 27th)!

In 2006 The Body Shop wins PETA's Proggy (progress) awards for our commitment to avoid animal testing.

The Body Shop becomes part of the L'Oréal Group and de-lists from the London Stock Exchange on July 12 2006. It retains its unique identity and values and continues to be based in the United Kingdom. It operates independently within the L'Oréal Group and is led by the current management team of The Body Shop reporting directly to the CEO of L'Oréal, Jean-Paul Agon.

 

A more brief summary

The Body Shop International plc is a global manufacturer and retailer of naturally inspired, ethically produced beauty and cosmetics products. Founded in the UK in 1976 by Dame Anita Roddick, they now have over 2,100 stores in 55 countries, with a range of over 1,200 products, all animal cruelty free, and many with fairly traded natural ingredients. All products are made with a love of life, respect for the world we live in, a spirit of individuality, and commitment to trading fairly. In a word, passion.

You can now shop online for hundreds of gorgeous, innovative, sweet-smelling products that do exactly what they claim to do, inspired by nature, ethically made. All of your favourite products, 24/7 shopping, delivered direct to your door.

Not only has The Body Shop selected some of the very best ingredients to benefit the skin, many of the formulations contain at least one Community Trade ingredient. Community Trade is a special purchasing programme created by The Body Shop to source natural ingredients and accessories from marginalised communities from across the world. The programme supports suppliers by paying a fair price and helping them to invest in the future of their business. With Community Trade everybody benefits! While you get a gorgeous product, a community gets a fair deal. So now you can feel twice as good about your purchase!