Natura Riskless Return Faces Threat on Expansion Abroad

Natura Cosmeticos SA, Brazil’s largest maker of beauty products, is expanding abroad after its focus on the domestic market helped deliver the best risk-adjusted return on the benchmark index.

The company, whose door-to-door business model mirrors Avon Products Inc., agreed last week to buy 65 percent of Australia’s Aesop for A$68 million ($70.5 million). The acquisition of Aesop, which has brick-and-mortar stores from New York to Tokyo, marks a shift in Natura’s strategy of fueling growth through a network of 1.5 million consultants peddling products from home or work.