Avon Products Inc, the once-mighty direct sales company thanks to its army of door-to-door saleswomen, is filing for bankruptcy amid a mountain of lawsuits alleging talcum powder in its products causes cancer.
Avon Products, the US-based “non-operational” holding company that markets the brands product overseas, is seeking Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection “to address its debt and legacy talc liabilities,” the company said in a press release.
The beauty brand uses talc, a mineral that has been linked to cancer, in face powders and eye shadows.
In recent years, some 200 lawsuits have been filed against Avon Products that accuse the company of selling talc products that were contaminated with asbestos — another carcinogen.
John Dubel, chair of Avon Products, said the bankruptcy filing “will maximize the value of our assets and enable us to address our obligations in an orderly manner.”