JAFRA CLOSES T.O. COMPLEX; COSMETICS COMPANY LAYS OFF 75 WORKERS; OTHERS TO MOVE.

Byline: Cecilia Chan Staff Writer

An international cosmetics company founded by a husband-wife team 43 years ago has moved out of its Townsgate Road complex and laid off nearly one-fourth of its employees, officials said Monday.

Jafra Cosmetics International has contracted out the manufacturing of its skin-care products in Southern California to improve competitiveness, according to a company statement.

The company has laid off 75 employees - 14 managerial and technical workers and 61 others - whose jobs officially will be abolished Aug. 9.

Company officials were out of the state and unavailable for any comment beyond the written statement.

City officials hope to soften the blow of the company's actions by luring another company to the Townsgate Road site just off the Ventura Freeway.

``We certainly are going to miss them,'' said Gary Wartik, manager of economic development for Thousand Oaks. ``The property they own is very prime property. It's a nice area with medium- and high-tech businesses.''

He added, ``They have two to three buildings there for lease or for sale, so we are hopeful of tracking replacement tenants or owners of a good-size company.''

Wartik said he is in contact with a San Fernando Valley company, which he declined to name, interested in relocating to Thousand Oaks.

He said the company is looking for a building with offices, storage space and shipping facilities and might be interested in the Jafra site.

``We certainly want to make sure property like that doesn't stay vacant long,'' Wartik said. ``We want to maintain the ability of Ventura County and Thousand Oaks to attract companies from outside the area and add to the economic base.''

At the site, 317 employees handled manufacturing and distribution for Jafra.

The company is paying all laid-off employees salary and benefits through the 60-day notice period that will end in August, according to a company letter notifying city officials of the move.

The company also has paid each affected employee $1,000, the letter said.

``Jafra's independent sales force will not be impacted by this action Jafra is taking,'' the statement says. ``Jafra is retaining quality assurance, planning, purchasing and research and development functions.''

Last year 262,800 self-employed sales consultants handled the company's products worldwide, including 56,500 in the United States, according to the statement.

Jafra operates primarily in the United States but has subsidiaries in 11 countries.