No final decision has been made on the fate of the cosmetics lines held by Trimingham Brothers Ltd., but legal counsel for the beleaguered department store was yesterday optimistic about the department?s future.

Trimingham?s will close its doors on Wednesday July 27 after 163-years in business. While many of its departments will close with it, more profitable departments are being sought after by competitors.

The cosmetics department is one area where Trimingham?s has held a virtual monopoly. understands that three of the larger remaining retailers on the Island are all vying to take over the lines, which include Est?e Lauder and its sister company Clinique as well as its subsidiary MAC.

Trimingham?s lawyer Wendell Hollis said yesterday that negotiations with interested parties were continuing, but nothing had been finalised yet.

?There will be an ongoing cosmetics business in Bermuda and it is just a question of who is going to have it,? he said.

Yesterday Phoenix Stores president and CEO George Grundmuller said of his own company?s quest that there are only ongoing negotiations to report at this point. understands that the other two interested parties are A.S. Coopers and Sons and Gibbons Company.

Will Mayo, who owns Strands Hair Salon, Skin Clinic and Day Spa with his wife Carole is keeping a close eye on developments because Strands is the long-time exclusive distributor of the Clarins line which he has also been selling to Trimingham?s. While he has and always will sell the product at Strands, he is eager to continue to sell Clarins through the retailer that wins approval of the other cosmetic houses.

?Whoever grabs Est?e Lauder basically wins the race because, along with us everybody is going to follow [that cosmetics line,? he said.

?We support anybody?s initiative to bring about a new department. We have tried independently ourselves to secure some of the houses but the bottom line is I?m going to throw my hat into the ring with whoever is able to secure the majority because that is what we want.

?Clarins is fine up on Reid Street because it is within the Institute and you have the treatments to back it up, but as a cosmetic and perfume line we need that competition from other lines because women and men may be loyal to one brand but they will buy different pieces from other brands and generally make-up, etc. is impulse. You will go into the department and you may not have been thinking of anything and then you see something new or one of the sales people start to talk to you about something and before you know it you have bought some stuff.?

Mr. Mayo said the loss of the cosmetics department would be a blow to local consumers because cosmetics here cost an average of 20 percent less than they do at stores in the United States.

?We sell cosmetics in Bermuda at duty free prices which therefore is substantial savings over the US,? Mr. Mayo said. ?The savings are 15 percent under the US and when you factor in the average sales tax in the US at around five percent and usually a little more, you are talking a minimum of 20 percent saving which is a big saving on a luxury item.?

Whoever takes over the department will need tremendous warehousing and infrastructure to support it. They will also need a location for the retail business, which Mr. Mayo adds is key.

?Smith?s is really where we are wanting [Clarins and the other lines to end up because we need the Front Street and Reid Street entrances for viability of that department,? he said adding that while most of the houses including Clarins are supported mostly by local sales they still need tourists for about 25 percent of their sales.

?We still rely heavily on a certain amount of the tourist dollar to put the cream on the cake so to speak so we desperately need that Front and Reid Street access.?

There is going to be a huge void so I really take my hat off to any of the three groups that are trying to do something to try to hold it together because at least that department needs to be held together. For a huge amount of the female population, what are they going to do for make-up and perfume? It is like air and water.?Mr. Mayo said the loss of the institution Trimingham?s is ?pretty stressful from a business standpoint, but we?ll survive because we have already got the infrastructure in place?. However he believed locals will only realise what they have lost next Christmas.

?I don?t think Bermudians realise what we have lost. Just think of this Christmas ? you won?t have Coopers [as a big department store and we won?t have Trimingham?s. It is a big worry for all the other retailers left, it is a big concern.