Creightons plc in Peterborough is weighing up its options over a potential second bid for InnovaDerma, a global maker of Skinny Tan and other health and beauty products. 

The company has had one bid rejected but market watchers reckon this was just an opening gambit and that a deal, believed to be worth around £7.6 million, will prove tempting to InnovaDerma shareholders now the offer is out in the open.

Creightons manufacturers  personal care, beauty and fragrance products. It made a preliminary approach to the InnovaDerma board near the end of January but says it was “unequivocally rejected by the InnovaDerma board without affording Creightons the benefit of any further discussion.”

A statement from Creightons said its own board continued to have a serious interest in the possibility of a combination of the two businesses. It has published the text of its offer letter to InnovaDerma’s board so the target company’s shareholders were “directly aware of Creightons’ interest.” 

Now the bid has effectively become ‘hostile’ Creightons will only comment further if there are significant developments – one way or the other.

InnovaDerma is a UK developer and marketer of beauty, personal care and clinically proven life science products. It also has presence elsewhere in Europe as well as the US, Australasia, Asia and Africa. 

In a statement it said: “The board unanimously rejected the Creightons’ proposal on the basis that it significantly undervalued InnovaDerma and its standalone prospects.”

The company said recently that it was aiming to raise up to £4.5m through a share placing and open offer.