Lenthéric, Inc. is a manufacturer of perfumes, cosmetics, toilet preparations,
[“Purely Gossip”, '']Wall Street Journal
''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...
'', 7 January 1942, pg. 15. hair spray, and shampoo.
[“Helene Curtis Acquisition”, ''Wall Street Journal'', 12 October 1956, pg. 6.]
Corporate history
The name of the company was taken from Guillaume Lenthéric, a
French
French may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France
** French people, a nation and ethnic group
** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices
Arts and media
* The French (band), ...
distiller and dispenser of perfumes in late 19th century
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
. He operated a small salon in 245
rue Saint-Honoré
The Rue Saint-Honoré () is a street in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, France. It is named after the collegial , situated in ancient times within the cloisters of Saint-Honoré.
The street, on which are located a number of museums and upscal ...
in
Paris, France
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
, beginning in 1875. The firm incorporated in 1924. Lenthéric became a
subsidiary
A subsidiary, subsidiary company, or daughter company is a company (law), company completely or partially owned or controlled by another company, called the parent company or holding company, which has legal and financial control over the subsidia ...
of
Squibb Squibb is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* David Squibb (1935–2010), British conductor
* E. R. Squibb (1819–1900), American physician, inventor, and pharmaceutical company founder
* Geoff Squibb (born 1946), Australian poli ...
, and was 90% controlled by the parent company in January 1942.
In 1947 Lenthéric, Inc., experienced a decline in earnings due to higher wages, advertising expenses, and vast returns of merchandise from retail stores, which trimmed inventories. In 1951 the company hoped to increase sales by introducing a new line of makeup called ''Sheer Beauty''. It sold for less than $5. The firm also reduced the price of ''Debo'' deodorant from $1.35 to $1.00. This was accomplished by making the product in a plastic squeeze bottle rather than a glass bottle with
atomizer
Atomization refers to breaking bonds in some substance to obtain its constituent atoms in gas phase. By extension, it also means separating something into fine particles, for example: process of breaking bulk liquids into small droplets.
Atomizati ...
.
Squibb had manufacturing plants in
Brooklyn, New York
Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
and
New Brunswick, New Jersey
New Brunswick is a city (New Jersey), city in and the county seat of Middlesex County, New Jersey, Middlesex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.[Fifth Avenue
Fifth Avenue is a major thoroughfare in the borough (New York City), borough of Manhattan in New York City. The avenue runs south from 143rd Street (Manhattan), West 143rd Street in Harlem to Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village. The se ...]
and 58th Street in
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
. Squibb was acquired by the Olin Mathieson Chemical Corporation in the late summer of 1952.
Helene Curtis Industries, Inc., of
Chicago, Illinois
Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
acquired the Lentheric, Inc., division of the Olin Mathieson Chemical Corporation in October 1956.
In 1990, Old Bond Street, 88.5% owned by
Wasserstein Perella & Co., purchased Lenthéric and
Yardley
Yardley may refer to:
People Surname
*Bruce Yardley (1947–2019), Australian cricketer
*David Yardley (1929–2014), British legal scholar and public servant
*Doyle Yardley (1913–1946), American military officer
* Eric Yardley (born 1990), Ame ...
from
SmithKline Beecham
GSK plc (an acronym from its former name GlaxoSmithKline plc) is a British multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company with headquarters in London. It was established in 2000 by a merger of Glaxo Wellcome and SmithKline Beecham, w ...
.
[“Investor Group acquires SmithKline-Yardley,Lentheric from GlaxoSmithKline PLC through a leveraged buyout”, ''Thomson Financial Mergers & Acquisitions'', 7 July 1990.] In 1998, Old Bond Street collapsed and Lenthéric was sold to Shaneel Enterprises Ltd.
References
External links
Corporate website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lentheric, Inc.
Companies based in New York (state)
Cosmetics companies of the United States
History of cosmetics
Design companies established in 1875
1875 establishments in France