It’s Women’s History Month, meaning it’s a time to recognize and celebrate the women who have challenged expectations, created lasting change, and shaped industries. As a woman-owned waxing salon and a pioneer in the beauty industry ourselves, we believe it is especially meaningful to highlight the trailblazers who helped transform and change the industry into what it is today.
For the second blog post in this series, we’re highlighting Helena Rubinstein, a visionary entrepreneur who built one of the first global beauty empires and helped pioneer the scientific approach to makeup and skincare.
Early Life And Beginnings
Helena Rubinstein was born in Kraków, Poland, in 1872. She attended her first business meeting at the age of just fifteen, substituting for her ill father. After a brief period studying medical science, she became very unhappy due to the sights and odors in the hospital, despite enjoying the laboratory work. Her father agreed that she could end her studies, but insisted that she marry instead. Her mother insisted that she and her sisters would gain power and influence through beauty and love.
The 18-year-old Helena refused to marry the 35-year-old wealthy widower. After writing to her uncle in Australia, Helena fled, escaped the arranged marriage, and brought with her twelve pots of her mother’s beauty cream. It was named after her mother’s friend, actress Helena Modjeska. The ‘Modjeska’ cream, created by Dr. Jacob Lykusky, was made from a formula of herbs, essence of almonds, and Carpathian fir tree-bark, and was the beginning of Helena’s beauty industry journey.
The First Salons
The Australian women who were suffering from sun-damaged skin were in awe of Helena’s beautiful skin. Her mother kept providing her with more cream until Helena decided to open a shop to sell the cream. She received a loan from a woman whose skin had improved from using the cream, and with the loan, bought a large quantity of the cream and rented and furnished a shop in Melbourne. She began experimenting with creams for different kinds of skin in her kitchen, and a journalist from over 500 miles away even came to interview Helena. The country-wide publicity resulted in a multitude of orders for Helena. She used the money to bring over Dr. Lykusky to create more related products. She worked 18-hour days for two years, and turned the £250 loan into a £12,000 credit. She eventually started to appoint her sisters and relatives to run different parts of the business. She then began studying with experts to learn about skin treatments, facial surgery, and dietary practices.
While developing her career, Helena fell in love with an American newspaperman. When he proposed, she said she first wanted to establish a salon in London. Eventually, she opened the salon while continuing her beauty and skincare training in Europe. After Edward proposed again, Helena accepted. She was 38 years old when they married, and her husband helped create advertising for her salon.
After having two children, Helena moved to Paris, where she purchased a salon that specialized in herbal preparations. She found that the women in Paris were more receptive to her innovative makeup.
Moving To The United States
A year after World War I began, her husband convinced her to move to the United States. They landed in New York City, where she began advertising her products with promised scientific benefits. She opened her New York Salon and eventually began expanding her operations in San Francisco, Philadelphia, Boston, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., Chicago, and Toronto. She even moved to Hollywood and created the iconic ‘vampy’ look for stars like Theda Bara and Pola Negri using mascara.
After marital problems and complaints from her husband, he began an affair with a younger woman. Helena sold the business to win him back to prove their marriage was important to her, but it was too late. The new business owners, the Lehman Brothers, had no luck with the business. Helena had kept in touch with the store owners where she sold her products, and they reported their dismay with the brothers.
Helena began to secretly buy stock on the open market and persuaded other stockholders to complain about how the Lehman brothers were running the business. Then, the stock market crash allowed her to purchase her business back at a fraction of what the brothers paid for it.
Personal Life And Business
Helena traveled to Switzerland after a tragedy in her family to recuperate and study diet treatment. She came back to the United States ten pounds lighter and full of energy. She had the idea to bring this treatment to her salons, naming it “A Day Of Beauty”. It became a worldwide craze.
In 1935, Helena met a Georgian Prince named Artchil Gourielli-Tchkonia, and they married three years later. Helena was criticized by some for her products, saying they were unnecessary during the war. She argued that during times of trouble, women needed the added lift of makeup.
In the 40s, she opened the House of Gourielli for men, where she sold colognes and facials for men; however, this venture was a bit too far ahead of its time.
In addition to her products, Helena encouraged women not to smoke, drink lightly, exercise, diet properly, and be peaceful. She passed away in 1965 at age 94.
Accomplishments
Helena’s cosmetics business was said to be worth between $17.5 and $60 million, with international holdings, laboratories, factories, and salons in 14 countries. She established the Helena Rubinstein Foundation, which provided money for the arts and charitable institutions.
She was best known for her scientific approach to makeup and skincare, and was the first to classify skin types (oily, combination, dry), collaborating with dermatologists to advance skincare. She was a pioneer in the beauty industry, launching the first waterproof mascara in 1939. Helena was one of the wealthiest self-made women of her time and was known for being a titan of industry, creating a brand that spanned four continents.
Celebrating Innovators In The Industry
At Waxi Taxi, we’re honored to shine the spotlight on women who were truly innovators in the beauty industry. These women proved that determination, innovation, and vision could transform an industry. Stay tuned for our next installment of women who shaped the beauty industry!
