Story of a house: Estée Lauder

A visionary woman

Pioneer in the world of beauty, Estée Lauder created the company that bears her name in 1946, just after World War II ended. She is generally recognized as having revolutionized the world of beauty, with her innovative and successful ideas about what women wanted. Her first big hit came in 1953. While most of the perfume sold in the USA at that time was French, and women rarely purchased it for themselves, Lauder had the bold idea of launching Youth Dew, a spicy, sensual Oriental elixir… in the guise of a bath oil. Women loved it so much that Estée Lauder wound up launching Youth Dew as a perfume. It was the first chapter in the American olfactory adventure...

The sweet smell of success

A great number of fragrances followed. First there was Private Collection, in 1972, a creation originally reserved for Mrs Lauder herself, then White Linen (1978), an aldehyde-floral breath of fresh air. After them came Beautiful (1986), a classic floral, Knowing (1988) a chypre, and Spellbound (1992), a floriental. In 1996, the house dreamt up a whole new kind of floral fragrance, perked up with fresh green notes and pink pepper: Pleasures. A huge success that led to the launch of Pleasures for Men, a fresh, mild fragrance for men. Since then, the brand has launched Intuition, Intuition for Men and Beyond Paradise, an imaginative fragrance in a rainbow-hued raindrop-shaped bottle. Conceived in collaboration with the Eden Project (a plant conservatory in England) Beyond Paradise uses natural tropical essences.

Heritage & Future

In addition to perfume, Estée Lauder brings women the best in cosmetics and skin care, thanks to their ultra-sophisticated products. She has also contributed to the lunch and development of many other brands. Today, the Estée Lauder group counts 25 brands, including Clinique, the make-up company MAC, Donna Karan, Aramis, Origins, Jo Malone and Tommy Hilfiger. A businesswoman of passion and conviction, Estée Lauder passed away in 2004. But her boundless creativity lives on through her children, who have taken over the family business.