이 기사는 2022년 05월 27일 08:00 thebell 에 표출된 기사입니다.

Wyatt, the hair-care reservation service of South Korea’s Kakao Corp, has hired EY Hanyoung to sell itself, industry sources said.

The deal is expected to be worth 100 billion won ($78.8 million) or higher. Potential buyers for the company include hair and beauty platform companies and local private equity firms with exposure to the beauty industry.

Wyatt, founded in 1998, develops customer management solutions for beauty salons. It bulked up by merging with scalp care brand Dr.For Hair at the end of 2020.

Kakao Corp invested in the company in 2015 as part of its move to grow its online-to-offline business. Kakao Investment was the largest shareholder of Wyatt, with a 24.19% stake, at the end of 2021.

Wyatt has raised money from external investors each year since 2018. Its investors include investment firms such as KB Investment, DSC Investment, CTK Investment, Brain Asset Management, Aju IB Investment, DB Private Equity and Korea Investment Partners, as well as securities firms like NH Investment & Securities, Kiwoom Securities and Samsung Securities.

Wyatt raised 48.6 billion won in its latest funding round, which was conducted from May to August last year.

The company originally planned to prepare for an initial public offering. But it pivoted to a sale process following public criticism that Kakao Corp’s aggressive expansion squeezed small business owners.

After the planned sale, Wyatt will lose its halo as a Kakao affiliate but will be able to expand its business more aggressively than before. (Reporting by Hyo-jung Lim)