Dealmakers Plan to Fly Drones to Keep M&A on Track in Pandemic

Dealmakers are turning to drones to help complete transactions in the era of social distancing.

Coty Inc. and the suitors for its professional beauty unit that could fetch as much as $8 billion are considering conducting due diligence by flying drones across manufacturing facilities, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

This is a way to keep Coty’s divestiture plans, including the sale of the beauty brands Wella and OPI, on track while lock-down orders prevent in-person meetings in several countries where it has factories.

Meetings and negotiations can be done by phone and video calls while virtual data ...