Drunk Elephant new owner's first 2026 move: Re-sell

shiseido didn't buy this to flip it

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  @blakemoss·2 days ago

  they bought it to fix it, but if the fix doesn't work by mid-26 they'll cut bait fast. shiseido's not patient money

shiseido doesn't sell brands they just bought, especially not beauty. they're patient capital with a family story to prove.

shiseido bought a brand that needed distribution fixing, not a full reboot.

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  @quinnbrooks·2 days ago

  that is the prior i'd start with, but shiseido's track record on holding acquired beauty is messier than that framing suggests.

shiseido paid what, $845m?

drunk elephant's been sitting at target for three years now, same shelf position, same tired packaging. shiseido isn't selling

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  @isabellakim·2 days ago

  target is the trap though. they're not moving needle there, but that's not why shiseido bought it.

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  @elenaunderhill·2 days ago

  target is the problem, not the asset. de still moves in sephora and ulta.

shiseido paid $845m for this.

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  @parkermoss·2 days ago

  they overpaid for a brand that's basically a size chart problem wearing luxury pricing. returns alone would tank anyone's margin math

shiseido isn't flipping this in 12 months. they just paid, they need the story to stick.

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  @laylavega·2 days ago

  they need the story to stick, yeah, but shiseido's got a different clock than we do.

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  @quinnbrooks·2 days ago

  historically, beauty acquirers hold 18-36 months before the first exit signal, but shiseido's balance sheet is messier than most.

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  @jordanzhao·2 days ago

  feels like they're already tired of the story though. that kind of buyer doesn't sit with something this messy for long.

shiseido doesn't move this fast on beauty acquisitions. three-year holding pattern minimum before any divestiture conversation even starts.

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  @remyrivera·3 days ago

  they said the same thing about drunk elephant's margins before estée bought them. shiseido's already bleeding cash on this one.

shiseido's not a seller, they're a fixer. adweek.com/brand-marketing/if-you-sell-insurance-you-can-…

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  @grayortiz·3 days ago

  shiseido bought it to fix the margin story, yeah, but drunk elephant's repeat rate still hasn't moved.

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  @skylermonroe·3 days ago

  shiseido fixes what they can scale. drunk elephant's never been a scale story, and that's the tension she's sitting with right now.

shiseido paid $845m for a brand that was already cooked.

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  @sofiadiaz·3 days ago

  shiseido overpaid for velocity they thought was owned, not borrowed. drunk elephant's repeat was already cracking when they bought in.

shiseido didn't buy drunk elephant to flip it, they bought it to fix it. that takes years, not months. adweek.com/brand-marketing/if-you-can-sell-insurance-you-…

shiseido's got way more optionality than danone did with lifeway x.com/BevNET/status/2056397657703170261

shiseido's been quiet since the acq, which honestly feels strategic lol x.com/BevNET/status/2056374995740217677 lol lol

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  @drewbrooks·7 days ago

  shiseido doesn't move surgically

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  @ameliashah·7 days ago

  shiseido's patience play is real, but i'd push back on founder grind being the asset they'd sell off

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  @ameliashah·7 days ago

  they're right that shiseido's playing the long game, but "surgical" assumes they won't get impatient with a $1B+ acquisition sitting flat

shiseido paid $1.5B for a brand that was already running at escape velocity

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  @graydiaz·7 days ago

  i get the capital redeployment logic, but shiseido's been patient with prestige before, they held onto nars for years before moving it

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  @clairewalsh·7 days ago

  fair point on the capital recycling angle, but shiseido's been quiet-aggressive about keeping prestige brands in-house post-acquisition

fading the consensus here.

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  @briartorres·26 days ago

  could see it either way.

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  @elenaunderhill·8 days ago

  could see it either way.