The history of Estée Lauder, one of the world’s leading cosmetic brands, beginning with an $800 sale
Estée Lauder started with just a handful of skin care products
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Estée Lauder is one of the world's leading cosmetic companies.
To date, the company is worth billions and has over 20 brands under its name.
Today, Estée Lauder sells a large line of products, including skin care, makeup and fragrance, but it didn't start out that way.
Estée Lauder is one of today's leading cosmetic companies. (Budrul Chukrut/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images I Evelyn Straus/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Estée Lauder was started by a female co-founder with knowledge of skin care and a dream.
- Who founded Estée Lauder?
- What is Estée Lauder best known for?
- Who is in charge of Estée Lauder today?
1. Who founded Estée Lauder?
Estée Lauder was founded by a woman named Josephine Esther Mentzer, who was raised in Queens, New York, and her husband, Joseph Lauter.
She grew an early interest in skin care, as her uncle, who lived with her family, created skin creams, according to Estée Lauder's website.
Through observing and assisting her uncle, Lauder gained a wealth of knowledge about the beauty space that she would later take with her to launch her own company.
Estée Lauder was founded by a woman named Josephine Esther Mentzer and her husband. (Evening Standard/Hulton Archive/Getty Images / Getty Images)
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During the late 1920s, Lauder met the man she would marry, Joesph Lauter. Shortly after they wed, the pair adopted the surname Lauder and moved to Manhattan.
In Lauder's early days in the realm of beauty, she started to sell products in beauty salons, demonstrating proper application to women while they were getting their hair done.
In 1946, Lauder and her husband launched Estée Lauder.
Estée Lauder's first major order was for Saks Fifth Avenue. (Alex Tai/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images / Getty Images)
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Years following their launch, Estée Lauder's first major order came in. It was an order worth $800 from Saks Fifth Avenue, per Estée Lauder's website.
2. What is Estée Lauder best known for?
Today, Estée Lauder is known for high-quality skin care, makeup, fragrances and hair care products.
Though Estée Lauder started with four skin care products, according to the company's website, it was actually a fragrance that really put the business on the map.
During a time when perfume was a luxury for women, one often gifted to them by their husbands, Estée Lauder created a bath oil called Youth-Dew in 1953, that doubled as a perfume, creating a way for women to buy their own, according to Estée Lauder's website.
Estée Lauder became a multi-million dollar company through the creation of a popular fragrance. (Gabby Jones/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
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This product turned out to be extremely popular and turned Estée Lauder into a multi-million-dollar company.
3. Who is in charge of Estée Lauder today?
Many of Lauder's children and grandchildren decided to join the family business.
Lauder herself remained with the company until her retirement in 1995. She died in 2004.
Today, Estée Lauder is a publicly traded company that sells a variety of beauty products. (Tian Yuhao/China News Service/VCG via Getty Images / Getty Images)
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Today, Estée Lauder is a publicly traded, family-controlled company, where William P. Lauder sits as the executive chairman. The executive chairman is the grandson of Lauder.
Fabrizio Freda is president and chief executive officer of the company.