Revlon Incorporated was created in 1932 in New York. The name of the company originates from the names of its founders - Joseph & Charles Revson and also Charles Lachman (the first letter of his surname makes up L in the word REVLON). Today the company belongs to MacAndrews & Forbes, hosts 6,800 employees and has annual revenue of $1.4 Billion. But how did this empire start – that is the question.
Revlon started with three active entrepreneurs, that started with producing nail polish of a special formula. Before World War II Revlon also introduced its first lipstick, and was awarded Army-Navy ‘E’ Award for Excellence in 1944. 1940-s were the years of aggressive advertising for Revlon – it started to issue coloured ads in newspapers and magazines and to shoot first supermodels in them. In 1955 Revlon had to go public, however, this step did not make Revlon surrender to its competitors – quite on the contrary, the company started to launch a line after line. 1960-s were full of important events for the company – it launched its first perfume and a line of shoe-polishing means. What is more, the company (according to the exaple of General Motors) was divided into departments with more narrow specializations. Princess Marcella Borghese was the name of an international line, Ultima II line was the premium one, Revlon was supposed to be the largest and the lee pricey brand, Natural Wonder was created for children and Etherea was a hypo-allergenic brand.
fter launching its first fragrance in 1968, Revlon proceeded with a scent named Charlie in 1970.Thos was a scent aimed at working, liberated women, and it was a success. Which, actually, did not save the company from financial problems, for the competition in the market was getting really tough. To bring the company out of a financial mire, a decision was made to sell the company to Pantry Pride, the subsidiary of MacAndrews & Forbes Holding. What is more, an advertising campaign named "The Most Unforgettable Women in the World Wear Revlon" was started. It starred famous women of that times – not only supermodels, but also celebrities, cinema stars and other famous people.
Though today Revlon is not an independent company, it still remains one of the giants of the industry. Let’s hope this high-quality company will continue working with the same tempo!
