Museum of Modern Perfume

The Power of "Youth Dew" -- the 1953 perfume that launched Estee Lauder into space.

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 08:52:33 -0500

Why, when Estee Lauder announced a partnership with former Gucci designer, Tom Ford, was his first Estee Lauder assignment for his new business to "redesign" a 50 year old product: "Youth Dew" perfume?

Why? Because "Youth Dew" was like a lucky charm for Lauder. The original (1953) "Youth Dew" was the turning point for the Estee Lauder enterprise, the product -- her first perfume -- finally gave Estee Lauder a real money maker ... and cash for a major expansion of her tiny, family-owned business.

One Woman's Secret for making money with Perfume

Thu, 1 Mar 2007 10:25:17 -0500

Helena Rubinstein revealed the secret of how she made money with perfume to her aide-de-camp Patrick O'Higgins -- "Our perfumes are cheap! That's how we make money!"

But "cheap" alone does not make a perfume successful. Madame Rubinstein, however, know people who could help her get the best for less. Thus she could give her customers fragrances that they would adore with never a thought that they were buying a "cheap" product.

What ever happened to perfumer Robert Bienaime?

Thu, 15 Feb 2007 12:07:39 -0500

Perfumer Robert Bienaime is best remembered for his work as perfumer for Houbigant and his creation of 'Quelques Fleurs.' But in 1935 -- the same year Armand Petitjean left Coty to found Lancome -- Robert Bienaime founded Parfums de Bienaime in Paris. Where did Robert Bienaime come from? Where did Parfums de Bienaime go?

The Heritage of Antoine Chiris

Thu, 1 Feb 2007 17:49:11 -0500

Founder of perhaps the first great fragrance house in Grasse, France, the family owned Chiris business quickly grew into a global enterprise with agents and property worldwide, buying, processing and selling the raw materials of perfumery ... and, later, finished perfumes.

Famous perfumers such as Francois Coty and Ernest Beaux (creator of Chanel and Bourjois fragrances) passed through the Chiris establishment on their way to greater fame.

Unhappily, the rise of synthetic perfumery materials and mass market perfumes sent the House of Chris into decline ... and out of family hands.

The story of Bint El Sudan perfume starts with a young Englishman

Thu, 25 Jan 2007 16:48:18 -0500

The basic outline is as follows: One blazingly hot day in Khartoum, a band of men "looking like brigands from Omdurman" crowed into the small office of W.J. Bush & Co's local representative. After squatting on the floor and serving tea, they produced a number of vials of exotic fragrance materials. Their desire was to have them made into a perfume.

Eric Burgess, and W.J. Bush & Co. (now part of IFF) made it possible.

Dr DeVilbiss and the rise of the American perfume atomizer

Wed, 24 Jan 2007 10:11:29 -0500

Dr. Allen DeVilbiss, a nose and throat specialist, developed a medicated oil which could be sprayed into the throat and an atomizer to spray his solution.

His son, Thomas, took the invention to a new level, applying it to perfume ... and industrial painting, a la Detroit.

While the DeVilbiss throat atomizer and paint spray gun are plain and industrial, DeVilbiss "perfumizers" were objects of great beauty, created in many, many styles with many different types of glass.