Body Shop founder Anita Roddick dies

CHICHESTER, England, Sept. 10 (UPI) -- Anita Roddick, who turned one body products shop in Britain into more than 2,000 in 50 countries, died of a brain hemorrhage Monday at age 64.

Roddick, who had hepatitis C, died at a Chichester hospital, where she was admitted Sunday, The Independent said. Her husband Gordon, and daughters Sam and Justine were at her bedside when she died, the British newspaper said.

Roddick, who started her first shop in Brighton 30 years ago to support herself and her daughters while her husband was overseas, became well known for her efforts to promote human rights and environmental issues globally.

As recently as last week she was writing on the Internet about one of her causes, Free the Angola Three, and, as usual, tied it to corporate responsibility. "Businesses have the power to do good," she wrote. "That's why the Body Shop's mission statement opens with the overriding commitment, 'To dedicate our business to the pursuit of social and environmental change.'"

Clive Stafford Smith of the anti-death penalty organization Reprieve called her death "a real shame" and said she would be "sorely missed."

John Sauven, executive director of Greenpeace, called her "an amazing inspiration to those around her."