Stila Cosmetics has finally been sold to the New York-based private equity firm Patriarch Partners by the Wachovia Corporation and the CIT Group after the two latter companies became the owners after Stila defaulted on

loans owed to the Sun Capital Group back in 2006.

Stila was acquired by The Est?e Lauder Companies from its owner and founder Jeanine Lobelle in 1999 after if showed good promise in the US market as a niche brand appealing mainly to teenagers, with its distinct arty-sketched packaging and competitive pricing.

But analysts suggest that it is just one of several brands that it is finding the times very difficult with the make or break US department store business at present.

Patriarch Partners – under the guidance of its colourful founder and CEO Lynn Tilton – acquired Stila last week for an undisclosed sum and describes itself as: '…a vertically integrated distressed private equity firm with robust in-house operational turnaround expertise. Patriarch Partners, LLC (‘Patriarch’), founded in 2000, was built upon a proprietary patented financial model designed to manage and monetize the distressed portfolios of financial institutions.’