Fake tan firm poised for sale

St Tropez, the fake tanning company that bronzes the stars from Victoria Beckham to supermodel Elle MacPherson, is set to be sold to Lloyds TSB for about £70m (€102m), it was reported today.

LDC, the bank’s private equity division, is expected to sign a deal within a fortnight after fighting off competition from rival bidders such as Phoenix Equity Partners, The Times reported.

Judy Naake, the woman who set up the American company’s UK division, is poised to net £15m (€22m), the paper said.

The businesswoman, who tans the former Spice girl at home herself, is already thought to be worth £30m (€44m) after making her fortune selling the self-tanning products.

She started in the sales team for John Player’s cigarettes, and later became an agent for French beauty companies Decleor and Darphin before bringing the self-tanning cream from Los Angeles to Britain.

St Tropez, which has headquarters in Nottingham and California, generates four fifths of its sales from the UK.

The company sells creams and has tanning booths in thousands of outlets, such as Debenhams and Selfridges.

Other celebrity clients are said to include actress Billie Piper and singer and presenter Denise Van Outen.

A spokesman for LDC declined to comment.