Coty's Losses Deepen Ahead of 'Transition' Year Without Gucci

Coty, the American cosmetics and perfume group, has deepened its losses ahead of a 'transition' year without Gucci. The company, in the midst of restructuring, has announced a net loss of $618 million for the fiscal year 2025/2026, up from a loss of $381 million the previous year.

The group's sales have declined by 5% to $5.8 billion over the entire year. However, the situation has stabilized in the final quarter of the fiscal year, with a 1% increase.

"Our fourth-quarter results show the first signs of stabilization, although the recovery will not be linear," said interim CEO Markus Strobel.

The fiscal year 2027 will be a 'transition' year for Coty, with the company continuing to transform into a simpler and more focused enterprise. This will involve the departure of the Gucci license by 2028 and decisions regarding the company's mass beauty activity by the end of 2026.

In July, the American group, which has owned the Gucci beauty license since 2016, announced the sale of the license with a year's notice to Kering, the French luxury group that owns the Gucci brand. Coty will continue to operate the Gucci beauty license until June 30, 2027.

According to the terms of the alliance signed with Kering on October 19, 2025, L'Oréal will hold the exclusive license for the Gucci Beauty brand for a period of 50 years.

Coty will use the proceeds from the transaction to reduce debt, invest in its key portfolio of prestige perfumes and beauty products, and optimize its organization.

The company has announced a strategic review of its mass beauty division to focus on perfumery, with the integration of its prestige and mass perfume divisions.

Coty aims to continue reducing the number of launches, decreasing production and marketing costs through the use of artificial intelligence, and increasing spending on customer engagement.

Finally, Coty has announced the nomination of Soraya Benchikh as Chief Financial Officer (CFO), with a start date of September 1, 2026. She will succeed Laurent Mercier.

This nomination is part of the new operational structure implemented by Coty on July 2, which includes a new commercial decision-making model and the regrouping of research and development and procurement under a single direction.