The 0 Million Handshake: How Coty Inc. Secured the Majority Interest
When Peter Harf and the board at Coty decided to pull the trigger on the 51% acquisition, they weren't just buying lip kits; they were buying a direct line to Generation Z. The thing is, the beauty industry was reeling from a slump in traditional department store sales. Coty desperately needed a digital-first injection to revitalize its portfolio, which already included legacy names like CoverGirl and Max Factor. By acquiring the 51% stake, Coty took over the strategic direction and manufacturing logistics of Kylie Cosmetics, leaving the eponymous founder to handle the creative side of the house. People don't think about this enough, but moving from a private, family-run operation to a majority-owned subsidiary of a publicly traded firm changes everything about how a brand breathes.
The Valuation Controversy and the Forbes Correction
The deal was initially heralded as the definitive proof of Kylie’s billionaire status. Yet, the road to 51% ownership was paved with some of the most scrutinized balance sheets in modern history. After the papers were signed, a media firestorm erupted when Forbes revised its estimate of Jenner’s net worth, suggesting that the tax returns and sales figures provided by the Jenner camp had been inflated before the sale. It was a messy, public divorce from the "self-made billionaire" title. We are far from a consensus on whether those numbers were genuine errors or calculated maneuvers, but the reality remained: Coty had the receipts, and they now owned the lion's share of the intellectual property. It was a calculated risk for a conglomerate that was already struggling with a debt-heavy balance sheet from its previous $12.5 billion P&G beauty acquisition.
Defining the Strategic Partnership Agreement
Under the terms of the 51% majority holding, Kylie Jenner didn't just walk away with a massive check. She retained 49% of the business, a move that kept her skin in the game while offloading the "boring" parts of global expansion. But wait—there’s a catch. Because Coty is the majority owner, they consolidate the brand’s financials into their annual reports, meaning the transparency level increased tenfold overnight. As a result: the days of shrouded sales figures were over. I’ve seen many influencer brands try to scale, but very few have the stomach to hand over 51% of their soul to a corporate board that answers to Wall Street shareholders rather than Instagram followers.
Technical Breakdown of the Equity Structure and Global Distribution
The architecture of the deal is a masterclass in modern M&A (Mergers and Acquisitions) strategy. Coty Inc. (NYSE: COTY) didn't just buy a name; they bought a fully-integrated supply chain bridge. By owning 51% of Kylie Cosmetics, Coty gained the legal right to dictate where the products are sold, which labs develop the formulas, and how the marketing budget is allocated across different continents. It is a classic "Plug and Play" model. Coty utilized its existing infrastructure—the same one that powers Gucci and Burberry beauty—to push Kylie’s products into Ulta Beauty and international retailers like Douglas and Selfridges. Where it gets tricky is the licensing. The issue remains that while Coty owns the majority, the "Kylie" brand identity is inextricably linked to a human being who can, theoretically, become a liability at any moment.
The Role of Seed Beauty in the Pre-Coty Era
Before the 51% sale, Kylie Cosmetics was largely a white-label operation run by Seed Beauty, the same incubator behind ColorPop. This is where the technical history gets fascinatingly litigious. Seed Beauty actually sued Kylie Cosmetics and Coty, alleging that trade secrets were being passed to the new majority owners. They feared that the "secret sauce" of their lightning-fast production cycle would be harvested by Coty’s corporate machine. But the momentum of a 51% takeover is hard to stop. Eventually, the transition to Coty’s proprietary R&D facilities became the priority, marking the end of the "indie" phase of the brand. Which explains why many long-time fans noticed a shift in formula and packaging around 2020 and 2021; it wasn't just a rebrand, it was a fundamental change in the manufacturing DNA of the products.
Voting Rights and Corporate Governance
Does owning 51% mean you can do whatever you want? Not necessarily. In most high-level beauty acquisitions, the minority shareholder—in this case, Jenner—retains certain veto rights over creative branding and specific "brand-defining" decisions. However, from a purely financial perspective, Coty has the final say on the CEO appointment and the bottom line. Kris Jenner, often cited as the architect of the deal, reportedly negotiated terms that allowed the family to maintain a significant influence over the aesthetic direction. Yet, the power dynamic is clear: when the board meetings happen in New York, the 51% majority dictates the fiscal year objectives. And if the profit margins don't hit the targets, it’s Coty’s executives, not the Kardashian-Jenner clan, who have to answer to the analysts on the quarterly earnings calls.
Navigating the 2021 Brand Relaunch and Formula Overhaul
Following the consolidation of the 51% stake, the brand underwent a massive vegan and clean beauty overhaul. This wasn't just a trend-chasing move; it was a strategic necessity to align the brand with Coty's broader sustainability goals and to appeal to a more discerning European market. The 51% majority ownership allowed for a centralized push toward "clean" ingredients, which is much easier to manage when you have the purchasing power of a multi-billion dollar corporation behind you. Except that some loyalists felt the soul of the original "matte lip kit" was lost in the shuffle. Can a brand retain its cult-like influencer status once it is 51% owned by a company that also sells Hugo Boss perfume and Clairol hair dye? It's a tightrope walk that very few have managed to cross without falling into the "corporate beige" trap.
The Impact of the Coty CEO Shuffle on Kylie’s Growth
Since the acquisition, Coty has seen its own internal drama, including the appointment of Sue Nabi as CEO. Nabi, a beauty industry veteran from L'Oréal and Lancôme, brought a much-needed sense of prestige expertise to the table. Under her leadership, the 51% stake in Kylie Cosmetics was treated less like a novelty and more like a cornerstone of the "New Coty." This shift in leadership proved that the 51% ownership was more than a vanity purchase; it was a long-term play to survive the "retail apocalypse." Hence, the aggressive expansion into Kylie Skin and eventually Kylie Baby and Kylie Skin fragrance lines. The issue remains: if the person whose name is on the bottle loses their cultural relevance, the 51% stake becomes an expensive anchor rather than a sail.
Comparing the 51% Model to Other Celebrity Beauty Acquisitions
To understand the gravity of the 51% figure, we have to look at the landscape. Take Rihanna’s Fenty Beauty, for example. That is a 50/50 joint venture with LVMH (Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton) through their Kendo division. That 1% difference between a 50/50 split and a 51% majority is a massive chasm in the world of corporate law. In a 50/50 split, you have a partnership of equals; in a 51/49 split, you have a parent and a child. Why did Kylie choose to give up control when others didn't? Perhaps it was the $600 million liquidity event that was too good to pass up. Or perhaps it was the realization that managing a global empire is a headache that no amount of Instagram filters can solve. In short, the 51% acquisition of Kylie Cosmetics by Coty remains the gold standard for how to cash out while staying "in."
The Selena Gomez and Rare Beauty Comparison
Contrast this with Selena Gomez, who has reportedly explored a sale or IPO for Rare Beauty but has maintained a tighter grip on her equity for a longer period. Rare Beauty, valued at $2 billion by some estimates in 2024, hasn't yet pulled the "51% lever." This suggests a different philosophy: maintaining founder control to ensure the brand's mission-driven identity stays intact. While Kylie opted for the corporate safety net and the immediate massive payout of the Coty deal, Rare Beauty seems to be playing a longer, more independent game. Experts disagree on which path is superior, but from a purely financial liquidity standpoint, the Jenner-Coty deal is nearly impossible to beat. It provided the ultimate "exit" while allowing the founder to remain the face of the company—a luxury not everyone gets when they sell the majority of their business.
Common mistakes and misconceptions
The billion-dollar hallucination
The problem is that the public remains intoxicated by a phantom number. We still hear the word billionaire whispered in every tabloid headline, yet the reality in 2026 is far more pedestrian. When Coty Inc. finalized the purchase of who owns 51% of Kylie Cosmetics for $600 million in 2020, they essentially bought into a dream that was already beginning to fray at the seams. Forbes notoriously stripped the crown away after tax filings suggested the Jenner team had inflated sales figures for years. Let’s be clear: having $600 million in your bank account is an astronomical achievement, but it does not make you a member of the three-comma club when your remaining 44% stake is plummeting in value.
The total control fallacy
Many fans believe Kylie Jenner still calls the shots on every single lipstick shade and marketing campaign. Except that she doesn't. When a multinational conglomerate like Coty Inc. holds the majority, they hold the steering wheel. Jenner transitioned into the role of a brand ambassador and creative lead, but the massive corporate machinery of Coty handles the supply chain, the global distribution, and the heavy-duty financial reporting. You cannot sell 51% of your soul and expect to keep 100% of the creative autonomy. This misconception ignores the reality of public company oversight and the SEC filings that now dictate how the brand is managed.
Little-known aspect or expert advice
The re-acquisition rumors and equity shifts
In 2026, the beauty landscape is unrecognizable compared to the Lip Kit mania of 2015. The issue remains that Coty’s stock price has struggled, trading near record lows around $2.43 in May 2026. This has fueled persistent industry rumors that Kylie Jenner is exploring a buyback of the 51% stake she previously offloaded. Why would she do this? (Perhaps to regain the agility that a lumbering giant like Coty lacks?) As a result: the brand has pivoted toward "clean beauty" and fragrance expansions like the Cosmic Eau de Parfum to stay relevant. My expert advice for anyone tracking these types of celebrity exits is to look at the management fees paid to Kris Jenner, which usually hover around 10%, effectively eating into the liquid cash long before it hits Kylie's personal ledger.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who currently owns the majority of Kylie Cosmetics?
The majority owner is Coty Inc., a massive public beauty conglomerate that acquired its 51% controlling interest in January 2020 for a total of $600 million in cash. This transaction gave Coty the ultimate power over strategic decisions, while Kylie Jenner retained an estimated 44% stake in the business. The remaining small percentage is often attributed to various trusts and the matriarch of the family, Kris Jenner. Despite recent rumors of a potential buyback, no official SEC filings in 2026 have confirmed a change in this ownership structure. Coty continues to consolidate its balance sheet by leveraging Kylie's massive 390 million plus Instagram followers for digital-first marketing.
What is the current valuation of Kylie Cosmetics in 2026?
While the company was valued at a staggering $1.2 billion during the 2020 acquisition, that figure has cooled significantly in the current market. Most financial analysts now value the brand in the range of $600 million to $700 million, reflecting a broader downturn in celebrity-driven color cosmetics. This decline is attributed to shifting consumer preferences toward skincare and the "clean girl" aesthetic, which moved away from the heavy matte lipsticks that built the empire. Furthermore, the brand's e-commerce revenue has seen fluctuations, with some months in 2025 showing sales as low as $470,000. It is a stark reminder that hype has a shelf life.
Can Kylie Jenner sell her remaining stake in the company?
Yes, she technically can, but such a move would be highly regulated by the terms of her original agreement with Coty. Any sale of her 44% equity would likely require Coty’s approval or offer them the right of first refusal. Because she is the face of the brand, her presence is the "intangible asset" that gives the company value. If she were to exit entirely, the brand would likely experience a catastrophic loss in brand equity. Most experts believe she is more likely to remain a minority shareholder or attempt to reclaim majority control if Coty decides to divest its celebrity portfolio to focus on prestige fragrances. But such a maneuver requires immense capital that may currently be tied up in her other ventures like Khy.
Engaged synthesis
The saga of who owns 51% of Kylie Cosmetics is a cautionary tale of what happens when the "influencer" meets the "institution." We are witnessing the slow-motion collision between viral fame and the cold, hard requirements of quarterly earnings reports. Let’s be honest: the brand peaked the moment the ink dried on the Coty contract, and it has been fighting for its cultural life ever since. In short, while Kylie Jenner walked away with hundreds of millions in liquid wealth, she traded her status as an independent disruptor for a seat at a corporate table that is currently shaking. I believe the only path forward for the brand is a total private equity buyout or a Jenner-led re-acquisition to restore the "scarcity" model that made her famous in the first place. Anything less is just managing a slow decline in a saturated market.