The owner of Smashbox Beauty Cosmetics Inc. said it has agreed to sell the Los Angeles company to Estée Lauder Cos.

Smashbox was founded in 1996 by Dean and Davis Factor, two great-grandsons of legendary makeup artist Max Factor.

Terms of the deal with the New York cosmetics giant, whose brands include Clinique and Aveda, were not disclosed. Smashbox will continue to be based in Los Angeles, said TSG Consumer Partners LLC, which has controlling interest in Smashbox.

The trendy Smashbox brand will give Estee Lauder, sold primarily to an older customer base at department stores, inroads to younger women who shop in specialty mall stores such as Ulta and Sephora.

“Now that the brand is going to be in the very capable hands of the Estée Lauder Companies, we have no doubt that Smashbox and its very talented management team will continue to achieve new heights, said Chief Executive Dean Factor in a statement.

TSG, a San Francisco private equity firm, invested in the company in February 2006. Its portfolio companies include Perricone MD cosmeceuticals, MET-Rx Nutrition and Terra Chips.