A public safety officer watches as people stand in front of a Revlon-owned billboard taking their photos and displaying them in Times Square in the Manhattan borough of New York on October 13, 2015. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri

June 16 (Reuters) – Revlon Corporation (REV.N) It filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Wednesday after struggling to compete with emerging Internet-focused brands in recent years.

The nail polish and lipstick maker, controlled by billionaire Ron Perlman, listed MacAndrews & Forbes’ assets and liabilities between $1 billion and $10 billion, according to a filing filed by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.

The bankruptcy filing comes days after the Wall Street Journal reported that Revlon had begun talks with lenders ahead of looming debt maturities to avoid bankruptcy.

Revlon sales have struggled amid supply bottlenecks and a failure to quickly switch to sought-after skincare products, which has resulted in US stores losing shelf space to celebrity-backed startups like Kylie Jenner’s Kylie Cosmetics and Rihanna’s Fenty Beauty.

In contrast, competitor Coty Inc (COTY.N) It gained market share by investing heavily to improve supplies and meet the post-pandemic recovery in demand for mascaras and lipsticks.

Revlon, which has been managed by Perelman’s daughter Debra Perelman since mid-2018, had $3.31 billion in long-term debt as of March 31.

Formed in 1932 by brothers Charles, Joseph Revson and Charles Lachman, Revlon was sold to MacAndrews & Forbes in 1985 and released to the public 11 years later. The company bought Elizabeth Arden in an $870 million deal in 2016 to boost its skincare business.

But Revlon’s net sales in 2021 are down 22% from their 2017 levels amid increased competition. The company also made headlines two years ago when Citigroup Inc (CN) It mistakenly sent nearly $900 million of its own money to Revlon’s lenders, instead of a small interest payment. However, a US federal judge ruled that he was not entitled to a refund. Read more

Revlon, which began selling nail enamel nearly 90 years ago, also includes several brands including perfumers Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera.

Additional reporting by Maria Bonizath and Praveen Paramasivam in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyor and Shunak Dasgupta

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