New Revolution Beauty boss shocked by its ‘ethical values’

THE new chairman of scandal-hit Revolution Beauty admitted its ‘standard of ethical values and good behaviour’ fell short under previous leadership as it reported widening losses.

Derek Zissman made the comments just a day after taking over the job from the cosmetic firm’s now-departed co-founder Tom Allsworth.

It came as it published delayed results showing a loss of £44.9m in the year to February 28, 2022. That followed losses of £17.8m a year earlier.

Last year auditors BDO identified ‘serious concerns’ over the annual accounts, leaving the company to miss its deadline for reporting the numbers and its shares being suspended.

A probe identified issues such as £9.6m of sales which should not have counted towards annual revenue figures. Zissman yesterday acknowledged ‘some of the findings demonstrate that the standard of ethical values and good behaviour were not at the level expected of a plc’.

Earnings were about £23m lower than it indicated they would be in an update to investors a year ago. Revenues were downgraded from £194m to £184.6m.

The report warned about ‘material uncertainty’ of the ability to continue as a going concern and a qualification from auditors, meaning they are worried about aspects of the accounts.

Zissman said: ‘Whilst these results are significantly below that forecast by the previous management team, they reflect a robust business with a strong brand, loyal following, and significant potential. We now expect Revolution Beauty to return to normalised trading.’

Allsworth and Adam Minto set up the business a decade ago, and it grew into a favourite of the likes of Abby Roberts ( pictured), a British makeup influencer. Minto quit as chief executive last autumn while Allsworth stepped aside to be replaced by Zissman on Thursday.