The Sage Group, an independent investment bank which provides corporate finance advice to consumer and beauty companies, served as the exclusive financial advisor to Vita Liberata, a sunless tanning and skincare brand, in its sale to Crown Laboratories, a fully-integrated specialty pharmaceutical company focused on dermatology. Crown Laboratories is a portfolio company of Hildred Capital Partners, a New York based private investment firm.

Vita Liberata is a completely non-toxic tanning brand with a collection of odorless products free from parabens, perfume and alcohol. Vita Liberata sells at premium retailers in the U.S. and Europe, including Sephora, Ulta, Boots and Space.NK, and in prominent spas internationally such as George V Paris, St. Regis and Burj Al Arab.

“On meeting with the team at Sage for the first time, I found them to be not only very skilled and knowledgeable about the business of beauty, but also patient and supportive with a huge level of warmth and integrity and a sense of humor that I did not immediately expect from within the financial world,” said Alyson Hogg, founder and CEO of Vita Liberata.

“Crown Laboratories has a big vision for becoming a leading global player in dermatology covering all key consumer interfaces – OTC branded consumer, aesthetic, and medical prescription. Vita represents Crown’s first acquisition and is a meaningful step towards building its branded consumer division,” said Olivia Theroux, vice president at The Sage Group.