Benefit Cosmetics
| Benefit Cosmetics | |
| Company type | Wholly owned subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Cosmetics |
| Founded | 1976 in San Francisco |
| Founder | Jean and Jane Ford |
| Headquarters | , |
Area served | worldwide |
Key people | Jean and Jane Ford |
| Parent | LVMH |
| Website | www |
Benefit Cosmetics LLC is a manufacturer of cosmetics founded and headquartered in San Francisco, California selling at over 2,000 counters in more than 30 countries. It is a subsidiary of LVMH.
Founders
Jean and Jane Ford were born in Indiana, but later moved west to pursue a modeling career (most notably the Calgon bath products advertisements).[1] After modeling for a brief time, the Fords opted to move into a career in cosmetics.[1] Today they still operate as co-founders within the business.
History
Benefit Cosmetics was founded in 1976 by twins Jean and Jane Ford. Initially founded as a beauty boutique, the shop specialized in quick-fix products for beauty dilemmas. The decision of having their own beauty boutique was merely based on a coin toss, heads for a casserole cafe and tails for beauty boutique. In 1976, Jean and Jane Ford opened up their small makeup shop called The Face Place, in San Francisco’s Mission District. Their first product was a blush and lip tint called “Rose tint” (now renamed "benetint"). Jean & Jane Ford originally created the rose flushed tint for an exotic dancer who was in need of a nipple tint.[2] Benetint is most famously known by this story, but it has become popular for a much wider clientele. It remains the company's best-selling product, with 10 million bottles sold.[2] The Face Place later moved to Kearny St. in downtown San Francisco in the 80’s, and with the move came the debut of the original lip-plumping product, lip plump.
In 1989, the catalog was developed. Next, Jean and Jane Ford focused on department store distribution, and soon after the original Face Place was renamed Benefit Cosmetics. In 1991 Benefit opened up in its first U.S. department store - Henri Bendel, in New York City. With significant success in the U.S., Benefit went international in 1997 with their expansion into Harrods in London. Soon after, the Benefit Cosmetics product website was launched.
LVMH acquired Benefit Cosmetics on September 14, 1999. In 2001, Benefit launched their first bath and boudoir line, Bathina. Benefit opened its first "Brow Bar" (a boutique specializing in brow shaping) in 2003, at Macy's Union Square, San Francisco.[3]
References
- ^ a b Ellenburg, Celia (2009). "Benefit's Jean and Jane Ford". Retrieved July 1, 2011.
- ^ a b Millea, Holly (June 2011). "She's Come Undone". Elle Magazine: 170–178.
- ^ "Benefit Cosmetics Brows". Retrieved July 1, 2011.